


Meddlesome

by sassyhazelowl



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Bad Poetry, F/M, and failed attempts at wooing, comedy is covered but romance is suspect, is more of a satire, supposed to be a romantic comedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-28
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2018-09-12 20:25:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 71,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9089443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sassyhazelowl/pseuds/sassyhazelowl
Summary: Gray could not imagine what in the world he had ever done in this or all of his past lives to have karma come slap him like this. He was, overall, a good guy. He had done nothing to deserve this invasion of his privacy, nor did he need any help with his love life. Everything was just fine the way it was, and adding in one Lyon Vastia to the mix wasn't going to end well.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> A very polite and wonderful person asked me on tumblr where this fic went. Uploading to make it public again. Kudos and comments welcome and appreciated.
> 
> Main pairings: gruvia, lyredy  
> Side pairings: gajevy, jerza

  

Prologue

 

Gray could not imagine what in the world he had ever done in this or all of his past lives to have karma come bitch slap him like this.

As if his day hadn't started out badly enough. He had been sitting in the guildhall, minding his own business and eating breakfast. It was pretty early in the morning, so the hall was quiet and he liked it that way. No Natsu… no Gajeel… no annoying talking cats… no screeching Lucy or scary Erza. Just him, his sausage and his eggs. Pancakes turned to perfection with a dusting of powdered sugar for just a touch of sweet. It was glorious.

And then… BAM.

It was all blown to hell.

Literally BAM, since the rude, arrogant man that walked in didn't have any manners or know how to use a door correctly. He stood in the doorway like a king surveying his kingdom, which rubbed Gray the wrong way. Like dragging a porcupine over your backside kind backwards sort of wrong way. So he did what any hot-blooded young man would do in this situation. He carefully folded his napkin, set it on the table next to his plate and then slugged the d-bag in the face with a vicious right hook breaking the table and getting breakfast all over the guy's clean clothing.

"Hello to you too," Lyon grumbled, eye twitching and rubbing his cheek slowly with an iced palm. "Have you not grown out of slugging people in the face to greet them? So juvenile and immature."

"Like you're one to talk."

"True enough. I may have had to punch you simply to improve your dumb looks," Lyon allowed and carefully climbed to his feet. He stared at the table, which had formerly been held together with bent nails, staples and duct tape. He gave it a tentative poke and there was a horrible noise as it died for good into a pile of splinters. "That hardly seems safe."

"Master said he was tired of buying new chairs and we should stop breaking them. So we just have broken chairs and tables… don't worry, they're safe as long as you don't land on them!"

"Duly noted," Lyon replied dryly. "I shall endeavor not to land on any more furniture."

A grin broke out on both their faces and they slammed their hands together. The wrestling-greeting got a tad out of hand and the chair joined its table friend in splinters. Gray shrugged; it was just more room for the next brawl.

"What are you doing here?"

"Lamia Scale is currently being renovated and our Master informed us if we were seen anywhere in the vicinity we would be spinning until next year. I merely asked Master Makarov if I may stay at Fairy Tail for the duration of the construction, and he agreed. Your Master is a very reasonable man."

Gray coughed to hide his reaction to that comment. There were many descriptions used by many different people to describe Makarov. Reasonable was not the first word that sprung to mind. Clearly Makarov had accepted the request with glee in his eye and a smile on his face at letting loose a fox in the hen house or was it a cock in a fox house? Either way, the cunning old man was probably laughing himself sick at the free entertainment. Mavis help him, the Master probably volunteered Gray's apartment as a place for Lyon to sleep over too.

"Your Master sound like fun," Gray muttered back, any joy at seeing his brother trickling away. He almost was afraid… no, terrified, to ask how long. He'd been hoping the man was on his way through. "Flamebrain and that metalhead would hang tons of fun with her. How long are you staying again?"

"Just a week. After that, I have other places to be." A silence sat between them. It didn't take a genius to realize there were only so many places Lyon would have to be. Lyon gave a smirk, "No worries, I have reserved a room at the local hotel. I would fear some infectious disease at your abode, given the way you regard hygiene…"

"One time! I borrowed your toothbrush ONE TIME!"

"And that was all it took. How irresponsible…" Lyon tsked.

Gray was about to sock him in the face again when the door opened again. It was a lot less noisy and dramatic than Lyon's entrance. Gray looked around and realized while he had been bickering with Lyon, the guildhall had filled up with some of his least favorite people. He was slightly surprised that he hadn't been teased or mobbed yet. Although, the dark look Gajeel was sending over his large coffee mug spoke volumes about how much he was appreciating the noise of their squabbling that early in the morning. A pile of bolts and scrap metal sat by him, waiting for the coffee to be absorbed sufficiently for him to eat them. Natsu was minding his own business, for once, with Happy at the bar, chatting with Lisanna in a loud, enthusiastic voice. A few other familiar faces were yawning and scrubbing their eyes. Fairy Tail wasn't known for being awake before noon.

Two figures stood in the doorway and Gray took back his previous thoughts. It was every bit as dramatic as Lyon's entrance, just not as loud. What was with the capes? Who wore capes anyway? Why did they all have capes? Now Gray kind of wanted a cape too. Just because.

"Good morning!"

Uggh, not a good morning. Not at all. Commence the bitch-slapping on the double. He could already see where this was going…

"What the hell. We aren't a babysitting service!"

Jellal didn't say a word to the ice mage. Abruptly, he shoved a crumpled up paper ball at the young man. Out of instinct, Gray caught it. Dread washed over him. Damn his reflexes! This could not be anything good. Slowly, like the paper would bite, he smoothed it out to read it.

"Congratulations on your new job request," Jellal deadpanned. Don't think Gray didn't see the hidden, wicked look in his eye though! The man was obviously laughing inside like a maniacal… maniac. Yeah. He was enjoying this, the spiteful bastard. If Erza wouldn't chop him up for it, Gray would like to teach the former Wizard Saint a thing or two about manners. Because he totally would. "Good luck… you will need every bit of it."

The last part was muttered under the man's breath. Gray didn't think it was exaggerated though. Not after reading the messy script with the details of the job. Luck did not begin to cover what was needed to get through it with sanity intact. In fact, this looked like a perfect job for Lucy…

Curiously, Natsu snatched the paper from Gray's limp fingers. He cocked his head, sounding out the words like a preschooler. A large, fanged grin spread across his face.

"Sweet!" he announced.

Gajeel picked up the paper, carefully cupping his coffee in one hand, and cackled, "Gihi, scared of a little girl, stripper?"

Jellal and Gray both gave the Iron Dragon Slayer a look that made the crude laugh die in his throat. He cleared it uncomfortably and muttered some face saving mumbo-jumbo under his breath before taking a large slurp that covered half his face. He just had no idea the kinds of havoc that could be caused with this job request.

Hastily, Gray stuffed the paper in his pocket. Or rather, he tried to put it in the pocket of his pants. Which would have been a great hiding place – if his pants weren't lying innocently on the floor halfway across the room. When the hell did that happen? Instead, it went in his boxers, with its sharp paper cut potential waiting to cut into soft, defenseless skin.

"Gray!"

"Hey," he greet nonchalantly, his mind speeding and his body frozen in place. Turns out that was a really bad combination because he ended up being smashed in a full body tackle and crushed in a bear hug. Girls were not supposed to be that strong. She might be crushing his ribs at this point – he could swear he heard some cracking noises.

"Good to see you!"

"Wish I could say the sam—ouch, you monster. Don't pinch me!"

"That's what you deserve, jerk!"

Lyon made a strange noise next to him.

"I know, she's such a child," Gray sighed, expecting to be pinched again for his remark. Fortunately, the pink tornado had moved on to her next victim, Natsu, leaving the two standing to the side. Lyon had a thoughtful look on his face that said he didn't necessarily agree, "Most certainly not a child, Gray."

Unfortunately, Jellal seemed to catch the look too. Before the two could say anything further the blue haired man was before them. He seemed to loom up making the two ice mages squirm in discomfort. Jellal's eyes latched onto Lyon and Gray hastily excused himself a few yard away. After all, he wanted a front row seat without actually being in the ring. He'd already had one talking-to and ear tugging; it'd be far more amusing to see someone else get the wrong end of Jellal.

"And you, who are you again?" Jellal asked gravely, his voice and eyes ice-cold. He just needed a strong wind to blow his cloak into a frenzy behind him to be more imposing. Gray was wondering if Lyon was going to piss his pants because he sure looked like it.

Lyon pulled himself together in half a second and stood straight at attention, "Lyon Vastia, sir! Of Lamia Scale."

"Oh yes, I remember you. Do you recall who I am?" Jellal oozed a certain sort of danger that made both Lyon and Gray exchange a fearful look. This wasn't the quiet, morose and slightly dopey (when Erza was around) Jellal that Gray knew. Nor the strong, silent, aloof "Mystogan." Nor the cruel, arrogant Sigrien. This was a new breed of Jellal – dangerous and focused and cunning. Papa Jellal.

Gray almost wet himself. Almost. But he didn't because he was a man of steel nerves… and bladder.

"Yes, sir, I do."

"Very well. Let me reiterate, for the moment, that it is  _not_  the Wizard Saint Jellal you need be concerned with. It is the  _guardian_  Jellal, who is leaving his charge in the care of Fairy Tail while he goes on a mission. Are you paying attention, Mr. Fullbuster? This concerns you as well. I expect  _correct_  and  _proper_  behavior towards Meredy while I am away. I also expect to have her returned with to me with proper behavior… no excess destruction or pyromania or kleptomania or any other sort of mania. Do you boys comprehend what I mean?"

Both of them nodded vigorously at the man while he frowned down at them.

"Oh, hi Erza!" Gray called out and waved looking over Jellal's shoulder. While Jellal whipped around to look, Gray grabbed Lyon and quickly dragged the man with him behind the bar.

"I thought Erza was out on a mission with Lucy and young Wendy?" Lyon whispered, puzzled and nervous.

"She is."

"Smooth, brother, smooth." Lyon remarked cheerfully and clapped him softly on the shoulder. Gray had to admit Lyon wasn't being nearly so bad as he could be… Lyon practically read his thoughts and added arrogantly, "Although, I would fancy a bout with the famous criminal Jellal. I was most impressed with his battle against Jura."

"I'd pay to see that. As bookie, I could rake in quite the profit at your pounding, Frosty." Cana drawled from where she was sitting cross-legged above them on the bar and Gray yelped, "Where'd you come from?"

Lyon clapped a hand over his mouth and he prompted tried to bite it. Lyon gave him a disgusted look and let go to wipe his hand on his pants. Neat freak.

The woman shrugged and took a chug from her mug. She blinked at them placidly but Gray was not fooled. She one too many X's in her chromosomes not to be innately cunning and out to get him. Besides, she hadn't had nearly enough beer to be inebriated yet. No, she was sharp as a tack.

Gray had the feeling this was going to be the worst week of his life. The only thing that could possibly make it more complicated and more embarrassing and more headache-inducing…

"Juvia!"

"Meredy-san!"

Lyon seemed to perk up at the sound of Juvia's voice and Gray fought back the urge to smack him straight in his perverted, slanty-eyed face. Because Juvia was  _his_  nakama and part of  _his_ guild. And he really didn't like the way Lyon tried to claim her.

Did.not.like.

It was bad enough when Lyon hit on her outside of the guild. Inside, in his territory, it was practically unbearable. Not that Gray would ever say that out loud to anyone in this guild, ever. He had already seen the farce that was Evergreen and Elfman. The last thing he needed was "Matchmaker" Mira's special help or Makarov getting some perverted idea into his old head. He was trying to not get hooked up! He needed less encouragement and meddling not more. It only encouraged Juvia, and that girl did not need any more encouragement. She needed some trazadone sometimes.

He just couldn't stand Lyon being such a prick.

Shoving his foster brother in the face with his foot, Gray forced himself from cover. He might have also accidentally stomped on Lyon's fingers. Accidentally, yeah. Because they were in the way and Gray lost his balance while standing up so he had to stomp. Yeah. Not for any reason relating to Juvia. Lyon groaned in pain and grabbed at his ankle. He tripped and swore, stomping again and ending up with an ice boot for his troubles. Shattering it off, he stumbled his way out and tried to square his shoulders. His suddenly rather naked shoulders. When – never mind, whatever.

If he was going to be slapped, he was going to face it like a man. Or so he told himself as the girls spotted him and shouted while his will faltered and shriveled up. This was going to be a long week… he wasn't sure he was going to survive it.


	2. Chapter One

 

Chapter One

 

Lyon covertly slid over towards the backroom. The last thing he wanted was Gray to ask him where he was going. His brother wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed but he seemed to know when things were going down, one way or another. Lyon hadn't necessarily  _lied_  when he said Lamia Scale was undergoing some renovations. It was, or at least the main guild hall was, the dorms were fine. And he didn't even live in the dorms. Actually, he lived in his own small house outside of town away from everyone. The original reason was that certain women in his guild kept breaking into his dorm and stealing things. His clothing bill was large enough from the misplacement of clothing and dangerous jobs that he just couldn't afford to lose any more of it to grabby fingers. Frowning with disapproval, he thought the ladies could at least take the stuff he discarded rather than break into his private space. Now he just kind of liked his privacy. A place where he could kick back and be free… however he wanted to be.

That was a tangent… long story short, he was here for another reason.

With Master Makarov's approval.

He was here for a job. A rather strange job request, to be sure, but one he really couldn't turn down. Because it involved some of the dearest people in his rather fragmented life. Aside from his crew of minions. Yes, the minions were highly important to him too. For lots of reasons. Yuka… Yuka amused him with those outrageous eyebrows. Come on, it was hilarious, especially that time they were all drunk and they shaved them off. Lyon was certain that Yuka was going to kill them all or break down sobbing like a little girl. Either way, it would have been entertaining. Disappointingly, all he did was mournfully touch his face… for like three months. And that made Lyon feel like a terribly shitty person. Lyon did offer to pay to tattoo them back on, but Yuka declined for some reason. And Toby… Toby was endless amusement. Lyon couldn't even think of all the times Toby had salvaged a particularly shitty day or mission by just existing as his dumb, amusing self.

Anyway, Makarov had blathered some mumbo-jumbo about Fairy Tail being a family and families needed to not fight too much and blah blah blah. The usual spiel about Fairy Tail. Occasionally inspiring… usually when that pink haired fire kid was screaming about it to the entire world… but mostly just really fucking annoying. Not all guilds worked like that. Fairy Tail didn't seem to realize it was the anomaly not the rule. And forget trying to tell them otherwise. That was just a waste of precious oxygen.

His job was simple. Facilitate Operation Gruvia.

What a dumb name. Lyvia was clearly a superior name. Or maybe Juvon? He was a modern sort of man. He could let the lady go first.

Truly, this job was a huge conflict of interest for him. Yes, he wasn't a total moron; he understood that Juvia only had eyes for his dumb brother. He pretended that wasn't a reflection of poor taste on her part. And for a while he'd thought maybe he could sway her. What could he say? It was a crush of the worst kind. Granted, it was a very, very short while. Like, literally two and a third minutes. He'd been stalked long enough to understand the mind of a stalker; for them, there were no substitutions or refunds or exchanges. Stalkers kept their eyes on the prize no matter what. It was somewhat of a professional pride for them.

Then he realized it was a golden opportunity to torment Gray, and he never passed up one of those. It was practically giftwrapped. And the dunce  _still_  hadn't figured out he was being messed with. Lyon was  _beyond compare_. He had to give himself a pat on the back for a job well done every time Gray got riled up and flipped out. His brother needed some excitement in his otherwise dreary personal life.

Did the man  _ever_  get some? Maybe that's why he had such a big stick up his… yeah. Unless he wanted something else up there and that was why he turned down the girls? Lyon pondered that for a moment. He was pretty close with that dragon slayer guy… Lyon suddenly broke into maniacal laughter at the thought for a brief moment.

Clearing his throat, he returned to normal.

He didn't get it.

Juvia was a smashing ten. She was beautiful and sweet and had legs that went for miles. And she was totally devoted to that fucking moron, who barely gave her the time of day. It made Lyon want to punch him in the face. Like, repeatedly. And then treat the lady like she deserved to be treated. Life had a sick sense of humor.

It's not like Gray  _didn't_  like her. Lyon could tell that much. Something else had to be going on. And Lyon was curious. That was the real reason he accepted the job. It's not like he needed money or an excuse to visit his brother. It wasn't so he could sabotage the efforts and take Juvia for himself, although, admittedly that was exceedingly tempting. He was so far above all of those things. Aside from the fact that he was already pretty rich and powerful (he was aiming for Wizard Saint and Guild Master after all… Lyon never halved his ambitions for anyone or anything), he actually did love his brother. Even when he was utterly furious with the bastard. Which was a lot of the time.

"Where are you going?"

Lyon swore an impressive string of expletives and nearly jumped out of his skin.

Meredy stood behind him watching him with big, curious, emerald eyes. Speaking of tens… then Jellal's face popped up and Lyon blanched. He cleared his throat hastily, reminding himself he did not have a thing for pinkettes, and gave her his sternest glare.

"Why are you following me?"

She looked supremely unimpressed with his glare, which was annoying. He had worked hard to perfect that glare. It should knock any towering monster to its knees. It always worked so well with his minions. If this little slip was showing them up maybe he was being too lax with them. He made a mental note to work them into the ground when he got back to the guild. He couldn't possibly have weak minions. It reflected poorly on him as a leader.

"Why are you laughing like you're insane in some creepy backroom of Fairy Tail?" she retorted, "Seems suspicious to me. So I thought you were up to something."

"Really?"

"Actually, I was bored. Gray disappeared, which means Juvia disappeared, and I cannot for the life of me find either of them. Lucy and Erza are gone. I was hanging out with Natsu but… you looked more interesting."

"A rock probably looks more interesting than Natsu," Lyon grumbled, miffed she saw him practicing his evil laugh. He was still perfecting that after all.

She twirled around him with her hands behind her back and leaned forward giving a generous view of her cleavage. He dearly hoped that was done on purpose given her choice of clothing. He'd feel like a pedophile if that wasn't the case. Granted, she wasn't jailbait, but somehow it was hard to think of her as an adult. He also wanted her to know what she was doing for another reason. Because she had a nice rack, a very nice rack, and he felt she ought to know it. It was just a crime against nature if she didn't.

"Depends on the rock, I suppose. Diamonds can be very interesting. Natsu's a nice guy but not my type at all. He's way too blunt, and besides, I think Lucy's got a major crush on him." Meredy grinned with a wicked look in her eye. Lyon almost felt sorry for this Lucy girl. Almost. But not. Because a plan was hatching in his mind. He was pretty sure that he could use Meredy to complete his mission.

"And what is your type, pray tell?" he inquired with a keen look unable to resist.

"Bad boys," she replied. "I thought that was obvious? The badder the better."

"Oh ho," Lyon laughed mockingly, "All little girls are the same."

He expected her to get huffy like Chelia did but she just looked thoughtful, "Hmm, I suppose so. I mean, it's not like anyone else would have the balls to make a move on me. Didn't you see Jellal? He's like that  _all the time_. I so much as blink at a boy and suddenly it's Meteor time. It's so frustrating. I wish he'd stop being so overprotective. I can take care of myself!"

Oh yes, Lyon had seen Jellal. In fact, he'd seen Jellal fight. And he did not want to be on the wrong end of Meteor time, no sir, he did not. He also had to hide a very inappropriate smirk at her assertion she could take care of herself. Didn't all young women say that sort of thing? Her naivety was kind of cute, even if her mouth wasn't. It made him want to protect her, so he was getting where Jellal was coming from. This kid still had some growing up to do. Then again, so did most of Fairy Tail; they lived in a NeverEver Land. He kind of wanted to pat her on the head like a puppy but he assumed she'd probably try to bite him or something.

"Well, if you must know, I'm on an important mission."

"Can't be that important if you're skulking in a backroom."

"I'm going to a briefing for an important covert mission," Lyon corrected with a scowl, narrowing his eyes to slitter slits. It didn't work; he could still see her grinning. It offended him.

"Oh."

"So run along, Snoopy."

She glared at him, making him smirk. He was enjoying this much too much. He had no idea what Gray meant by her being such a pain in the ass. Clearly it was because Gray had no sense of humor and an over-inflated ego. She was hilarious.

"Don't treat me like a kid sister," she said flatly.

"I'm not."

"You are."

"I'm treating you like my niece." He reached over and ruffled her hair thoroughly. If looks could kill, he'd be saving hello to the Devil in a moment or so. She swatted his hand and growled at him. He paused, pretending to consider something, before musing out loud, "Well, Juvia is your friend. And my mission involves Juvia."

"You're not going to try to date her, are you?" disapproval hung heavy in her voice. Ah, an ally in his quest. He guessed correctly. It also wounded him he would be judged so harshly. He would treat Juvia like a treasure, if she gave him the chance. Meredy seemed to sense that and hastily added, "Not that there's anything wrong with you. I mean, if Juvia wanted to date you, I'd support her. I'm sure you're a…" she floundered for an appropriate adjective and he smirked evilly. Giving up, she finished, "Guy."

"Why yes, thank you for noticing. I am, indeed, male. Would you like verification?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Uggh, do you do that too? That stripping thing? What is wrong with you guys exactly?"

"I am not nearly so immature as my dear brother. I only stripped for... special occasions."

She caught the leer in his voice and flushed bright red. Too cute. So easy to tease.

"Anyway, I am not trying to date Juvia. As entertaining as a love triangle would be and has been, for both myself and her, I fear it is one I would lose at and I am the worst sort of sport. Also, the thought of being in that sort of situation with Gray makes me wish that it was possible to bleach one's mind."

She blinked, "Okay. You've got some strong feelings about that. I can tell you've thought it over."

"There was an… incident… during the time we stayed for the Grand Magic Games… with Gray and Juvia... at a waterpark. We shall not speak of it. Ever." The grimace worked its way on his face and she gave him a sly look. He cleared his throat, hurrying away from his small weakness, and added, "No. My mission is facilitating the coupling of Juvia and Gray. As something more than they are now, although, it is anyone's guess how much more."

How absolutely vile that sounded out loud. He wanted to scrape his tongue and gargle some acid to get the words out of his mouth. The lingering after taste was disgusting.

"Like…?"

"Boyfriend and girlfriend," he supplemented, a tiny bit sourly.

"Oh, why didn't you just say so? And why are you doing it… you could turn down the mission. Master Makarov is very understanding."

"Or I could have not accepted it in the first place. No, I do wish Juvia happiness, and this seems to be the best way to give it to her." He paused and begrudgingly added, "And Gray too. Besides, once he proves himself to be a terrible boyfriend, she might just dump him."

"Ever optimistic."

"Realistic." Lyon corrected bluntly, "Gray would make a terrible boyfriend. My brother doesn't have a romantic bone in his body. He doesn't have much regard for another's feelings, he's selfish and he has a bit of a hang up with being close to other people. Plus, I suspect he's a virgin, the greatest sin of all."

"Seems legit. So how are you going to get them together then?" she asked him, keeping pace as he slipped into a storage room. It was a bit ridiculous to be hiding back here, but those crazy women insisted.

"Took ya long enough," greeted them at the door and he rolled his eyes slightly at the drunk. She was sprawled out comfortably, booze at her side, playing around with some cards. She didn't seem surprised in the slightest at the tag-along. "I'm bored."

"Oh dear, how in the world could you ever be bored with such a lovely companion?" Lyon said with a straight face.

"Hey, no knockin' on the booze, Frosty." Cana retorted and patted it lovingly, like he'd hurt its feelings.

"Okay guys," Mira said breaking in between them. She was smiling cheerfully and Lyon felt disarmed. Somehow it was like the sarcasm just bounced and slid off her. "We're here to think of ideas, so no fighting. This is to help our friends. Hello Meredy."

"Hi Mira! I wondered where you were earlier."

The two women hugged and Lyon wondered what was with women and hugging. They always seemed to do it after re-meeting and leaving and meeting and when they were excited and pretty much any other time. Was there something special that happened between them when they hugged that involved their… feelings. Yes, feelings. A physical manifestation of their… feelings.

He noted that Erza and that blonde chick were missing but many of the other Fairy Tail women had crawled out of the woodwork. Or, judging by the woman doing her nails with a disgruntled look on her beautiful face, were coerced into joining. How did Fairy Tail end up with all the babes? A short mage with blue hair was engrossed in a novel with a very interesting cover. He wondered if that constituted as 'research' with a half-naked man and swooning, half-dressed woman on the front. Gray was always half-naked, and Juvia was always swooning, so it didn't seem far from reality. Perhaps he should borrow it at some point for ideas.

"So how can we help Lyon?" Mira said, bringing them to order.

The real question was: how in the world did these women know about his mission? He most certainly had not informed them. Covert missions were supposed to be sneaky. The more people who knew, the more likely a leak. Didn't these Faeries know anything?

"Lock 'em in a room together." Cana suggested. "Don't let 'em out until the deed is done, if ya catch my meanin'. I can give Juvia some tips…"

"Uh… okay. We'll keep that in mind. Anyone else?"

"They should go on a romantic date."

"Yeah, I think Juvia's tried that." Meredy muttered from beside Lyon.

"Well, we do have Lyon here. Perhaps exploiting the love triangle aspect of it? Assuming you are okay with that, Lyon?"

He gave a light shrug. Whatever got him out of this soupbowl room of estrogen intact.

"Juvia likes baking? Maybe something with baking?" the other white haired girl recommended sensibly. Lyon pictured Gray in a pink apron and scoffed. That was a snowball's chance in hell that Gray would demean himself so in the kitchen. Lyon immediately considered what sort of blackmail would be required to make it happen. He wanted to see it.

"We could do something big with the guild, like karaoke. Too bad the Fun Run isn't for several months."

"That's not too bad…" Levy muttered and shoved her nose deep into the romantic novel in her hands. Lyon snorted quietly, immediately realizing bookworm and run didn't belong in the same sentence.

"Well, you could always give them a taste of the domestic life and have them babysit little Asuka."

"That… is actually a very good idea."

"I know this great sex shop with lots of fun toys…"

The women all collectively gasped, scandalized, and Lyon rolled his eyes. This was going nowhere fast.

Lyon zoned out as the women yapped back and forth about different scenarios. Most of them could be implemented  _without_  his aid, so he didn't understand why he was involved in this. His plan basically consisted of forcing Gray to stop being a dickless wonder by whatever means were necessary. Lyon didn't know the meaning of excessive force or overkill, so long as it got the job done. If Gray was collateral damage, Lyon was perfectly okay with that.

When the first object bounced off him, he wasn't really paying attention. By the third time he was hit in the head, he was glaring at the source, who was staring back at him innocently. Seems he wasn't the only one who was bored out of his skull. In retaliation, he poked her, pleased to note she puffed up like an angry puffer fish. The next object that hit him was bigger and kind of painful.

"Ouch," he hissed at her, checking to see how his hair was faring against the assault. Fortunately, it seems he'd put enough gel in to hold a gorilla. His glorious spikes were still intact despite her attempts to sabotage his stunning good looks. She stuck her tongue out.

Oh, so it was like that, was it?

He studiously ignored her throughout the rest of the meeting, daydreaming about Juvia and humiliating Gray and becoming the best wizard in the world. It would be amazing to crush all those who opposed him under his heel while laughing victoriously.

It wasn't the most original daydream, he'd admit, but it had helped him survive many tedious and hellacious meetings in the past at Lamia Scale. He was gifted with charisma, he'd admit, but the rest of political inclination seemed to escape him. Politics were only fun when he got the chance to humiliate or crush someone and then laugh in their face. Sadly, that seemed to happen rarely.

Meredy, when he checked discreetly out of the corner of his eye, looked more and more put out by his cold shoulder and tried harder to get his attention.

"Okay, did you get all that Lyon?"

"Yes, I recall every word you ladies said. I will incorporate your advice into my plan."

They filed out of the room, looking pleased with themselves, and disappeared into various hallways. At least they got the dispersing part of the secretive missions right. Within a blink it was like none of them had ever been there. Lyon pondered how often they did things like this to be so practiced.

"You're so full of crap," Meredy pointed out from where she stood at his shoulder. He graced her with a sparkling expression and smile, making her jerk back in surprise. But only for a second. Then she was leaning in closer, curious as a cat. "How'd you do that?"

"Magic," he replied, flicking her nose. She hissed at him, making him chuckle. Maybe Snoopy was too preemptive of a nickname for her. She was more like a pink, fuzzy kitten. Kitten… hmmm. Abruptly, he blushed when it hit him exactly what that sounded like. Nope, Snoopy was a fine nickname. Glorious. Platonic. Little sister like. Ball-saving, all things considered.

"None of that stuff is going to work," Meredy said, clutching her nose with both hands. She fell into step with him. He was used to being shadowed, so it barely registered at all she was following him. In fact, at this point, he felt weird when no one was following him. "I'm sure Juvia's tried all that before. She's pretty persistent. Too persistent actually. Gray doesn't like clingy or a lot of attention. Just from what I've seen."

That was a fairly mature observation; Lyon was surprised. Maybe she wasn't so childish as she pretended to be.

"That was very astute, and I agree. It seems that there are a few issues to be addressed before this relationship can proceed," Lyon remarked seriously, rubbing his chin. "Juvia needs to stop throwing herself at Gray, and Gray needs to man up. Otherwise, it will continue in an endless cycle."

"Hey, I'm very good at reading people! So of course it was a decent observation. Don't pretend like I'm a child; I have eyes you know. Plus, I have my powers, so I know how Gray and Juvia feel about each other! How can we fix these two things, then?"

"Power?" Curiosity saturated his tone. Of course, Gray had mentioned bits and pieces when he came back from his seven year disappearance. The two of them had spent hours discussing the events on Tenrou Island, Ultear and many other things, but Gray had glossed over the part about Meredy. At the time Lyon had been too happy to see his long-lost brother returned hale and hearty that he didn't question it. It was hard enough to absorb the news about Ultear, Ur's daughter. Of course, he had vaguely known about her, although not the specifics. Rumors, childhood memories and the like. But he had never met her and certainly never fought her. She had never sought him out at Lamia Scale, although, surely, she knew where he resided and who he was.

For once he had been glad that Gray was a Fairy. If Lyon and Ultear had fought, the end results would have been very different. And it shamed him slightly, that he could hurt or kill Ur's daughter without pause. He gave quarter for no one, unless commanded to by the rules or his guild master. Or he could've been killed by her. From what Gray said, Ultear was a fierce and deadly foe. It was no guarantee he would have won. Either way, it was best that Gray fought her; he admitted that freely to himself.

She fidgeted shyly, peering up at him. Suddenly, a pink circle of hearts appeared around his wrist. He peered at it curiously and touched it. The skin was smooth, like it was a dye or tattoo rather than magic. If he hadn't seen it, he would've have known it was there. It didn't burn or itch or feel foreign like most hostile magics tended to be when they touched another mage.

Suddenly, he felt really insecure. It was a strange feeling, since Lyon never felt shy or insecure. Those were practically bad words in his dictionary of life. He had discarded them after losing his parents. Shy and insecure people didn't get anywhere in life. Confident and powerful people knew what they wanted and they took it.

He stared at her, noticing she had a pink circle on her wrist as well. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. She could link peoples' emotions. What she said made a lot more sense now. Immediately, he could see all the potential of such a power, and he was awed. If she used half her brain and didn't fight like a Fairy idiot, she would be a very formidable opponent. Admirable indeed.

Suddenly the feeling hung between them a moment too long to be comfortable. He realized she was probably reading his praise through the link and it was making her uncomfortable. Awkwardly, she dropped it, blushing furiously and hugging herself lightly. Lyon felt a strange, empty spot where the connection had been. He wasn't one to believe in fate or all that mushy stuff about red strings, but it was hard to argue with the suddenly chilly and empty pinprick sized hole in whatever it was she'd connected to. He also didn't understand why she would react like that. He truly found that sort of power intriguing and worth knowing about. He wanted to see her use it for more than just some silly little love game.

"The more I connect to someone, or the more they are connected to each other, and the stronger the emotion, the longer lasting the magic," she explain, glancing at the ground like it was the most fascinating thing she'd ever seen and refusing to meet his eyes. "I haven't asked, but I'm sure Gray and Juvia still have a lingering connection from the fight on Tenrou, even after all this time, because it was a pretty intense fight. Juvia's said she can actually feel when Gray's in trouble. I can tell where and what Jellal is doing most of the time now, since we've been together for almost seven years. Not in specifics, but generally. It's like a... side effect, I guess."

Seven years! No wonder the man had gotten pissy. In his eyes, Meredy was still probably like twelve.

"That is very essential information. I do not suppose you can use it in this endeavor."

"I'm sure Juvia would be over the moon about it but Gray would be pissed. He made me promise I'd never link them again without his permission."

Lyon nodded. Gray was such a pussy about his privacy. He'd always been like that, even as a kid. But he was also possessive about other things, not just his privacy. And that was his weak point. That was his flaw that Lyon was going to exploit.

"No matter. Gray is a simplistic being. I will simply add some competition and threaten to take what he deems his as I have already done. But this time I will be more serious about it. He will have no choice but to respond."

"Isn't that dangerous… to, like, you?"

"As if Gray could do anything to me," Lyon scoffed, brushing off her concern.

"Shouldn't I warn Juvia or something? She'll really freak out with you hitting on her all the time…"

Lyon leveled a wounded look at her, "And ruin my fun? No, her reaction needs to be authentic."

"I guess you don't really need my help after all." She looked so dejected he leaned forward and ruffled her hair. Whining in protest, she swatted at his hands and tried to duck away.

"You have a very important job. It is your job to keep me from taking this charade too far with Juvia because, while, I am famed for my restraint on a mission, this is a very trying task for me. I am holding you to this, you understand. This mission is too dangerous for me to take on without a partner I trust to watch my back." 

The way she brightened up brought an indulgent smile to his lips, and not the mocking kind he normally wore. He was genuinely amused at how easily she brightened up. It was strange to see such a lack of jadedness in a mage.

"Just remember it's pretend!"

That was easier said than done.


	3. Chapter Two

 

Chapter Two

 

Gray had no idea how he got roped into this. No fucking idea. Oh yeah, it was that bastard Lyon's fault. Because the asshole  _knew_  Gray couldn't turn down a dare. The glacier-breath just had to challenge him to a day in the kitchen.

And Gray did not know a damn thing about being in the kitchen.

Gray was a guy and a professional wizard both. He made ramen and hamburgers, and occasionally if he was feeling, it an omelet with cheese and bacon in it. Admittedly, it was mostly bacon, which was usually charred, but that was just for extra flavor. He didn't work hard on those missions just to shove his money away in a savings account; he made money for a reason. To pay someone else to make food for him to eat. Someone who could be in the kitchen without burning it down or turning the food into charcoal. The freezer he could handle no problem; the stove was something else again.

But he wasn't going to let that stop him when Lyon made an off-handed comment insulting his worth as a human being.

As thus, here he was.

Challenged to of all things an absolutely ridiculous bake off.

A bake off. With baking. In the kitchen. How absurd could this even get without him wondering if it were actually a nightmare?

Sweets were not even his thing usually, unless it happened to be an ice cream cone or popsicle. Those… he could do amazing things with those. Snowcones? No problem. Concretes, shakes, smoothies, sherbert, gelato… doable. This cookie and cupcake crap? Clearly thought up by the more evil female members of the guild to torment him. Or possibly a pink haired menace, who was currently staring intently at the shelf of identical looking bottles of stuff for flavoring cakes and occasionally asking his opinion on them. Because he knew so much about it.

Grunting at Meredy, he snatched up a bottle aimlessly labelled 'almond extract' and studied it, "Why are you my partner again?"

"Because you lost the arm wrestling match with Lyon," Meredy replied, distracted, while comparing two concoctions together like it was the difference between life and death. How in the world would she even know how to cook anyway? Her whole life was running around cooking wieners over campfires and drinking disease-infested water from lakes.

Oh yeah, that. Wasn't that the biggest fuck-up to his week? Natsu and Gajeel were never going to stop crowing about how Gray had lost to the older man. Lyon cheated! He totally cheated. Him and his dirty, filthy mouth, talking about how he was going to win and kiss Juvia. Which made Juvia squeak in Gray's ear and grab his shoulder in a vice grip. Which startled him and made him lose. So it was totally Lyon's fault.

He halfway expected Meredy to complain about being paired with him. Anyone with eyes could see the shine of hero worship around that crappy brother of his. That shit needed to be nipped in the bud before Jellal castrated both of them. Not only that, but he certainly expected Juvia to object! Yet neither woman made too much of a fuss, declaring the win legit. What was up with that? Then again, Juvia kind of seemed to be in a coma or drugged up. Maybe Lyon had cooked her brain with the constant sickening sparkles he seemed to manifest every time he looked at her. After half a day of that, she seemed to give up on life and turn half melted and half steam, depending on his antics at the moment. Gray was all the way pissed. Even more than he'd been at the bar that morning.

The young woman beside him finally looked over, face twisted up in a look of annoyance fighting with something else before it settled into a cheerful smile as she waved the bottles in his face confidently, "Don't worry. Ul taught me to read, and I can follow a cook book."

Yeah, so could he. That didn't mean anything. For once, he actually wanted to be partnered up with Juvia. After all the treats she'd forced him to eat, he knew she was pretty good at baking and could win this, making Lyon eat paste. At the very least she wouldn't be poisoning anyone who so naively volunteered to be taste tester, with whatever came out of her oven. And he wouldn't constantly be doing pervy things to her or overheating her poor brain with stupid flirting like Lyon was. He'd be saving her from suffering at the hands of his asshole brother.

"Will you help me here. What flavor should I get?"

What?

"What? I don't know. Why would I know that."

"I dunno; they're  _your_  guildmates. I thought you might know what people like. How long have you lived there, and you don't even know what they like to eat?" Meredy retorted, losing her patience and giving him a dirty look with the smile slipping and eyes accusatory. He scowled back at her, not giving an inch under her attitude. This was the worst week he'd ever had, and the amount of suckage was off the charts between Lyon and Meredy and Juvia. What did they all want from him?

Catching his thoughts, he jerked up and chewed himself out. Why include Juvia? She hadn't done anything; if anything, she was as much of a victim of this mess as he was. Besides, he really didn't have any right to say what she could or couldn't do. If she wanted to hang out with Lyon, well, what could he say to that? He didn't like it, and he didn't have to like it, but he needed to respect his friends.

But dammit, Lyon did too. And the second Juvia made a sound of protest, Gray was going to march over there and give the man a piece of his mind about leaving people alone when they asked.

Before he could blink, bright yellow ducks paraded across his vision, dancing and swaying under the influence of the sadistic Maguilty Mage's fingers, silently quacking in what was either terror or motion sickness. She shook it a little harder until she was sure his attention was on the apron and asked expectantly,

"What do you think of this apron? I think it's cute! Oh come on Gray, you're absolutely no fun to shop with at all."

He eyed her pouting face and sighed a little, forcing himself not to wipe his hand down his face. He guessed he was being a pretty miserable, worthless shopping companion, and really, that wasn't fair either. It wasn't Meredy's fault he was distracted and grumpy, so he shouldn't be taking it out on her. Although he really wasn't sure what to say about the apron. It wasn't a perfectly hideous apron although he wasn't sure little dancing yellow chicks and ducklings constituted a sign of fashion sense and impeccable taste either. There were probably lots of aprons in the world that were far worse. Plus, it didn't have any of that lacy crap on it or any creepy fetish stuff he didn't need to be picturing on her. Ever.

"It's cute," he replied dutifully. "And… yellow."

His eye caught on another apron. One that was a lot less cutesy and a lot more sexy. Before he could stop himself, he was imagining Juvia in it. He'd never so much as looked at girlie clothing before let alone pictured a  _girl_  in it. Did he  _like_  Juvia?

It was confusing as hell.

He'd already turned her down. He didn't like her like that. Time and stalking wasn't going to wear down his frozen resolve. Sure, she was nice. Amazing, actually. She'd proved time and time again that she'd do anything for him.  _Anything_. He couldn't ask for a truer friend… except she didn't want to be his friend. And that seemed to be the problem at the heart of their stubborn tug-of-war.

And Gray was the king of obstinate jackassery.

If for no other reason than because he could be.

Jellal was probably the only one more set on higher jackassery than he. And Juvia was a lot cuter than Erza – fucking hell! His brain turned traitor again! Although Juvia  _was_  a lot cuter than Erza. Because Erza was freakin' scary most of the time or annoyingly bossy or being a better man than him and Natsu put together in a fight. Yeah, being shown up by a girl was  _not cute_. Although he probably shouldn't complain about the times he was  _saved_  by said girl though.

It wasn't that he didn't think Juvia wasn't hot or sexy or anything like that. Fairy Tail was full of gorgeous woman, and Juvia could definitely sit on par with the best of them. The bikini was always appreciated but he especially liked her long skirt that had the slit up the side of it that showed off sneak peeks of her thighs and smooth legs. She probably wore it because it was comfortable and easy to move in but occasionally he thought it might be just for his enjoyment. Not that he'd ever say anything about that. Her fumbling around with her different versions kind of creeped him out. He couldn't even imagine giving her encouragement and what that would do to her.

He wasn't a totally moron. And he hated being a dick about it. It made him cringe every time Juvia cried or he saw the hurt look on her face due to his careless words. It was easier to just ignore her and hope she'd give up.

Honestly, he wasn't good enough for that exorbitant level of devotion.

All he did was what any decent guy would do: he saved her from falling off a roof and hurting herself.

Despite his grand speech about going against anyone, be they man, woman or child, who hurt or threatened his guild, he really had trouble fighting girls. He'd fight them; he'd fight anyone if it was necessary. But he didn't really see the need to let her get hurt, even if she'd been his enemy at the time. Ur would never have approved of kicking someone when they were down or letting them fall without offering some help.

Yet somehow he did some kind of miracle, and he chased away her rain. Totally by accident, he'd admit, but he still did it. And he'd do it again in a heartbeat.

That he didn't regret. There were so many things he regretted, and that was not remotely one of them. He loved to see Juvia happy and sunny and part of Fairy Tail. She had taken to the guild like a proverbial fish to water. There wasn't a trace of the scary woman he'd faced that was part of Phantom Lord, dead-eyed, lonely and beaten, left in her. It was like she'd been a caged bird locked alone in the dark and she was released into the open sky. He's grump and snarl if anyone asked, but one of the best parts of his day was watching her being free to be her goofy, sweet, distracted self.

The stalking, on the other hand, was regrettable. Very regrettable. And kind of—actually, very creepy.

"Earthland to Gray…"

Snapping. Damn, that was annoying.

He grabbed Meredy's hand out of habit and pushed it back towards her. At the last second he was careful not to snap or bend her fingers like he would have Natsu or Gajeel. Most other people knew better than to snap in his face. She huffed at him, puffing her cheeks out like a demented hamster. Yeah, she needed to stop that. It wasn't nearly as cute as she thought it was.

He poked her cheek with a finger, and she growled. Now that – that was cute. She sounded like a fierce baby animal.

"What're you thinking about?"

Without thinking, he replied still lost in thought, "Juvia."

"Really?" Meredy sounded surprised, her green eyes wide, and he bristled. Was it really that extraordinary that she had to take that kind of tone with him? Like it was impossible he'd be thinking about the blunette when they'd just been talking about her earlier when they first entered the store? Her eyes followed his gaze, which was still aimed at the not-so-innocent looking apron, and a huge, pervy grin crept across her face. Uggh, she'd been hanging out with Lyon too long; she was already corrupted! "Oh,  _I see_."

"That's it, no more Lyon for you. Jellal will have my head if you come back  _more_  obnoxious than you were before," Gray muttered half-heartedly, a blush across his face and his hand over it to hide the blush. How'd she read into that so fast?

"Well, I think I got everything we need. Shall we find Juvia and Lyon?" Meredy asked as she popped both of the concoctions in her basket with a shrug. He didn't notice the blush on her own cheeks hidden when she bowed her head to take the items off the shelf at the mention of Lyon.

Suspicious. She didn't even blink at his funny behavior.

Kill.

He was going to start a list of people to kill.

Lyon, yes, top of the list. And Cana was probably going to end up at the top, he was certain of that. And maybe Mira, although she'd been suspiciously quite recently; not dropping nearly as many hints as usual or making comments. He was sure the list was only going to get longer as this week progressed. It was literally only the first day, if you didn't count the night before. How much damage could be done in a week? A lot. A fucking lot of damage could be done with the right set of people. And Fairy Tail was a wrecking ball of damage. Lyon was the king of damage. And Meredy… okay, not that much damage. She at least seemed to have some grasp on reality, sort of. And she didn't tease him about blushing, so bonus points for that.

"Oh, there they are!"

Gray followed Meredy's finger unconsciously.

The pyramid stack of cans behind the other two mages might become a casualty of war at any moment. It was just too poorly placed and conspicuous for it not to be used like a bowling alley lane. It was practically begging for Lyon's spiky head to become a bowling ball for a grand slam strike, in Gray's mind. Plus, it'd make a satisfactory crashing sound if the cans flew everywhere. The sound effect was important after all. Gray had to think of these things when he fought.

Lyon had his arms around Juvia's shoulders and was expounding on the merits of using fresh cream very loudly. Gray got the feeling he wasn't talking about using it on cake frosting either, given the way steam was pouring from Juvia's ears and she looked like she was going to pass out from a nosebleed. Catching Gray's glare, Lyon shot him a squinty-eyed bastard look from over her head and leaned over to whisper something.

"That's it!"

"Maybe you should leave them alone, Gray," Meredy murmured lowly to him, subdued. "Juvia seems fine to me."

Gray paused, about to dismiss the notion as utterly stupid and ludicrous. But to his surprise, when he looked closer, Juvia did seem to be listening intently to what Lyon said, leaning forward a little to catch his words. Whatever he said, it seemed to make her eyes light up brightly and she cocked her head at the notion. She made that weird little cat-eyed face for a moment.

Adorable.

What… no. Not adorable… well, maybe a little adorable. But… gah. Now his face was heating up again too!

"Fine."

Turning on his heel, Gray snatched the list out of Meredy's hand and tried reading it. Why'd this all look like gibberish anyway? Was it some kind of secret code or something?

"Uh, upside down," Meredy remarked in a know-it-all tone and snatched the paper back. It gave with a horrible sounding rip that made both of them wince. Gray made a fist smashing his half of the paper into a mutilated little ball. Meredy stretched hers and stared at it as it ripped further. "Great, now look what you did."

"Me? You're the one who snatch it out of my hand, you brat!"

"No, you grabbed it first, jerkface!"

"So?"

"So it's your fault! Duh!"

"Is not."

"Is too!"

"In your dreams. Whatever, just put it back together so we can get this finished."

Gray realized that they'd drawn an audience with their bickering and had the grace to check if he was still wearing all his clothing. Everything but his shirt was still in place. He was doing well today.

"I can't… read it…" Meredy admitted mournfully. She tried to put the two ripped up and crumpled up halves together. The ink was smeared and the words torn through. "Does this say baking powder or baking soda?"

"Whatever. Just get both."

"O-okay, good idea. I think we got everything else, right?"

Lyon sauntered over smugly and leaned over Meredy's shoulder in a much too familiar way. She swatted at his face and stepped away out from under him while trying to puzzle out the list. Juvia followed while Gray tried to discreetly watch her out of the corner of his eye. She glanced at him and gave him a smile but walked past to lean over Meredy's other shoulder and offer their list as a comparison.

What the hell just happened?

What the HELL just happened?

Gray stared at the blunette in astonishment.

"Your mouth's hanging open," Lyon whispered smugly as the girls wandered down the aisle to find the last of the ingredients. "It's a good look for you: the doddering idiot. I endeavor to see it more often."

"Shut your trap," Gray snarled back, wanting to wipe that smug look off his face with a fist. He was sure his blood pressure had risen noticeably over the past twenty-four hours. This was worse than three Natsus, dealing with his asshole brother.

"You want to go?" Lyon challenged, using the phrase he'd used so often as a child when he was about to pound his younger foster brother. There was a distinct lack of malice in it though. Gray wondered when Lyon had changed to the playful, if sadistic, man before him. He'd been a rather brash and spiteful child, an egotistical and vicious teenager, but after seven years, it seemed like he'd grown into a competent and indulgent stranger.

Gray didn't like it. It was all wrong. He felt… insufficient. Immature.

"You've changed," Gray remarked, studying the other ice mage like he was a puzzle.

Lyon sighed and dropped his arrogant look. He ran his fingers through his hair, looking away and muttering softly with a slight blush, "Well, seven years is a long time. People change."

Gray really hadn't given much thought to it. Sure, he realized they'd be gone for seven years. But… but almost everyone he'd been close to were on the island  _with_  him. They hadn't changed into strangers; they were the same as before. It was more like the world had changed.

Meredy had grown up. Lyon had grown up. Jellal had… okay, bad example. Jellal only got older in Gray's bias opinion.

What if Juvia decided that she was going to grow up too and leave him behind? Before it might not have bothered him much but suddenly the notion made him uncomfortable.  _People change_. That's what Lyon had just said.

"Yeah, I guess." Gray stuffed his hands in his pants pockets.

"We looked for years, you know. Your guild, my guild and Blue Pegasus…" Lyon gave a mirthless laugh then added punching Gray lightly in the shoulder, "Seven years is a long time to wait, brother. So don't take it too hard when I kick your ass with my awesome power."

"As if," Gray scoffed scornfully ignoring the churning in his gut. He gave Lyon a punch back for good measure.

His eyes looked past Lyon at Juvia, lingering on her lit-up face and listening to her animated voice explaining something stupid about baking to Meredy.

Groaning, he hung his head. Change was hard to deal with. But he had the feeling the somewhat comfortable relationship – platonic relationship, on his end anyway – was going to change soon. And it scared him.

Gray Fullbuster didn't do well with fear. His response to any threat was generally to smash it to pieces. He had enough sense to realize that kind of approach wasn't go to work in this situation. You couldn't just smash other people and relationships with brute force to fix things.

He wasn't sure what he could do. He might need some outside help. The thought made him cringe.

This could go so, so wrong.

Fuck his life.


	4. Chapter 4

 

Chapter Three

 

Lyon stared down at the eggs. It was inconceivable… that a man such as he couldn't crack eggs. Juvia had patiently shown him, twice, how to crack an egg without spilling the yolk everywhere or get shell in the egg. Her neat, beautiful hands flowed gracefully over the counter and made quick work of the egg. It was like poetry in motion, watching Juvia crack an egg. Watching Lyon crack an egg, on the other hand, was like listening to Gajeel's notion of "music."

He was beginning to regret this baking challenge thing. While he'd taken advantage of some alone time with Juvia at the store to give her some well-meaning advice regarding Gray, he really had no idea how to shop or bake. He lived, mostly, on take-out and made his minions go grocery shopping for him. On missions he ate at whatever restaurant tickled his fancy. His kitchen boasted one pot, one pan, a spatula and stuff to eat with. It was Spartan but sufficient for his needs.

"Juvia," he sighed, giving up, "Can you give me another task? I fear I am destroying all of your eggs. I highly doubt our taste testers enjoy a bit of crunch in their cupcakes."

She glanced over and made a soft sound of surprise. Hastily, the woman swept over and wiped the counter with a sponge. With a wave of her hand, she squeegeed the water into the sink leaving the area dry and clean. For such a spacecase, she was surprisingly meticulous being in the kitchen. Even though it was technically the guild's kitchen, she hummed and moved around confidently. It was clear she spent a lot of time and love in this kitchen.

Gray, on the other hand, looked as out of place as Lyon felt. He had one hand shoved in his pocket and was reading out of a cookbook to his partner with the book clutched to his chest as if he were guarding a treasure. Lyon's only regret was they couldn't get him in a frilly pink apron, not that it would've stayed on long anyway. A more manly edition of the apron hung around his neck like a huge sign of shame. But instead of a big, red A (for asshole, obviously, not adultery) there was some fancy text and a pair of bright red lips.

It was an open invitation for every female who walked through the kitchen to use him as a target.

Probably the most action Gray had gotten for a long, long time.

And, surprisingly, Juvia didn't kill anyone in the process. Laughing, strained and fake, but it was a sort of parody of laughter and not death rays pouring from her eyes, and pointing out the apron was making the girls do it. Lyon speculated Juvia might just be making a list for later and was using this as a test for 'love rivals.' He was unabashed, enjoying the irritated and flustered look on his brother's face.

Meredy's apron, on the other hand, was so appropriate he laughed when he saw it and earned a punch to the shoulder. Somehow he imagined her PJs were of a similar ilk. That would be a sight to see… abruptly he smacked himself in the face. What in the world was he thinking? Gah, that was not a good path for his mind to be following down. Meredy… PJs… or… not? No PJs. For good measure, he smacked himself again, wincing at the gooey feeling dripping down his nose from the second smack.

"Lyon-san… um… you have egg…" Juvia stuttered, red in the face and embarrassed to be pointing it out.

He gave a small laugh, a little bit strangled but a laugh, and reached past her for a towel to wipe his face. Of course he'd have egg on his face. Just fucking perfect. The only sign from above that the powers that be weren't totally against him was Gray wasn't looking. But Meredy was…

"Oi! Two cups of flour… what're you doing? Gah!"

Well, Gray got his two cups of flour. On his face, but he got them.

"Pay attention, Meredy!"

"Sorry, I – I think I need to read the cookbook and you measure out the ingredients, Gray."

"What? Hey, that wasn't the deal." Gray snapped before stepping up and grabbing the flour sifter. Roughly, he started shaking the powdered wheat through the grate. Abruptly, a huge poof of the stuff flew into the air at a particularly rough shake.

Lyon watched with fascination, hand towel paused at his face, as Gray gave out of a hellacious sneeze that threw him back. In the process of catching himself, he slammed his hands into the table. And an open bag of flour. Instantly it was snowing flour across the entire kitchen, covering every surface in white.

It didn't take too much thought on his part to grab Juvia around the waist and pull her back from the impending destruction on the other half of the kitchen. She squeaked and grabbed at the half-made cake batter squishing it between them.

"Don't melt, Juvia," he advised softly, wincing as the rim of the metal bowl dug into his ribs, "Or you'll be a puddle of flour paste."

The two mages watched as the strange and edible fallout flour slowly settled with Gray and Meredy standing awkwardly in the middle. Meredy fingered her hair slowly, comprehension of the awful time she was going to have in the shower flitting across her powdered face. Gray… Gray looked better than Lyon could have ever imagined when he started this dare. The other ice mage had a look of utter disbelief on his face. If Lyon stuck a carrot to his face he'd be a fantastic snowman because there wasn't a speck of color anywhere on his except his shiny black eyes, wide with shock. Even his necklace was coated with a film of white powder against his chest.

"Gray-sama looks like a snowman," Juvia said wonderingly, unknowingly echoing the man's thoughts. Unconsciously, Lyon tightened his grip and scowled a little. He only loosened it when she made a noise of discomfort, apologizing and offering to take the cake batter.

"Well, it seems we are victorious, Juvia," he remarked loudly to the two sorry looking mages across the kitchen.

"No way, asshole!" Gray sputtered, sending flour flying everywhere as he swung up his fists in a threat. Eyes watering and sneezing, he artfully punched himself in the nose.

"Very threatening," Lyon noted, baiting his brother. "How do you plan to win, Olaf?"

"We can do it," Meredy rallied to Gray's side, covering a giggle behind her hand, and trying to brush off the flour with her palms. Walking over to the clean side of the kitchen, she clapped her hands together, getting some flour on Lyon in the process, and peered over them pleadingly at Juvia and Lyon, "Please, let us clean up and try again!"

Oof.

OOF.

Where in the name of all things the dwelled in Hell did she learn that particularly unfair move. It was like a blow below the belt. Lyon really, really wanted to declare himself the victor. Because he was a champion and had to win. There was no reason to give the other team a chance to recover themselves when it was clear who the vanquisher was. No. The answer was absolutely not.

"Since you asked so nicely, I suppose we can be lenient."

No, dammit! Traitorous tongue.

Juvia nodded enthusiastically in agreement and added, "Juvia wants to change teams and be with Meredy! Boys team and girls team!"

"What!" both men shouted at the same time.

"Great idea. Why didn't we do that before?" Meredy agreed, still trying to get the flour out of her long, curly hair. Giving up, she settled for beating the flour out of her apron and pretending the whole matter was settled.

"Absolutely not!"

Meredy turned her look of doom on him again and he felt his resolve weakening. Well, if it was what the girls wanted… maybe it wouldn't be so bad… Looking over her shoulder at Gray's glowering, ugly face, Lyon tried to snap himself out of it. That was a fucking terrible idea. Why would the girls ever conspire to do such a horrible thing? Didn't they know Gray was bound to end up in the oven instead of the cupcakes? Which would probably break the oven and then Lyon would have to pay damages.

"Please?"

She turned towards Gray, "Please?"

The two men glared at each other before sighing and agreeing, "Fine."

This was not going according to plan. That made Lyon really cranky. He didn't like it when things didn't go to plan. He also didn't like having to work with ugly morons with bad attitudes. He didn't like giving in to puppydog eyes either. He didn't like any of this.

While the girls did their best to clean up the area and as a consolation prize give the boys the half-made batter, so as not to 'poison the taste testers completely' in Meredy's words, Lyon stood watching. Lyon was  _born_  to be a supervisor; it was his best talent and the role he excelled at. So he watched keenly as the girls cleaned,  _supervising,_  and ignored the filthy man beside him. Gray was too busy trying to wipe his skin off with a wet cloth to offer a good battle anyway.

"Huh, never thought I'd be grateful to this stupid thing," Gray grunted and patted down the apron.

"Gray, you are missing your pants, you exhibitionist. Didn't know you were into role-play kink."

"What! Shit. And I was doing so good too. Fuck it. They're probably ruined on the floor somewhere." The man grumbled, glancing around. "Oi, Lyon, where's your shirt?"

Lyon looked down and fought the urge to punch Gray. It was his fault Lyon was stripping again! He spent  _years_  breaking that bad habit, with the dubious "aid" of his sadistic guild master, and one day with Gray he'd already started losing his shirt again. And since he'd declined the apron, his bare chest was unprotected from another potentially deadly kitchen accident.

Meredy looked over and rolled her eyes, mouthing, "Just like Gray."

That was not the sort of reaction he'd hope for when a lady looked at his god-like abs and chest.

"Let's do this, brother," Lyon said, eye twitching in irritation. There was no way they could let the girls win and keep their pride intact. Just because he was outmaneuvered by that pink menace – how could he ever think she was sweet and innocent? – didn't mean they'd lost the kitchen war! "We cannot let them win."

Gray cracked his knuckles, "Now that's what I want to hear."

The two fistbumped to seal the deal and set about making the best cupcakes the guild had ever seen. They even had a lead, since the girls took the messy half of the kitchen, although Juvia had already cleaned most of it up with her magic, and the pre-made batter. Lyon quickly pointed out where he and Juvia had left off and they methodically started putting in the rest of the ingredients. It was going exceedingly smooth, although Lyon could see Juvia patiently teaching Meredy how to properly sift flour and measure out things precisely while Meredy chattered away happily with her friend and clumsily tried to follow instructions. It was amazing how calm she could be, how focused. Lyon realized he wasn't sure which woman he was thinking about, considering how energetic and passionate they both tended to be. Hyper-active, one might dare say, at least under their breath.

"Hey, eyes over here, perv," Gray muttered from behind the cook book and then clonked Lyon on the head. Lyon sneered and retorted, "Jealous, much? She's not  _your_  girlfriend, and she's much easier on my eyes than you are. I'll look where I please."

"Whatever. Just pay attention, will ya?"

Lyon artfully raised an eyebrow at the unexpected response. Usually he'd be up at arms about Lyon "harassing his guild mate" and all that other bullshit nonsense he lied about to appear disinterested and cool. Today it was just whatever huh? Now that was suspicious.

Lyon peered closer and was surprised to notice Gray's ear tips were red. His face was deadpan though, clearly with a lot of effort going by the clenched jaw and face in the book deal. This mission might be easier than he initially though. Juvia had taken his advice, although he couldn't imagine it was the first time she'd ever heard it, but she listened to  _him_. He was insanely flattered that she chose to take his advice, although he suspected it was only because he was Gray's foster brother. Gray was acting surprisingly quiet and meek.

Lyon wondered if Meredy's presence had anything to do with either Juvia or Gray's suspicious behaviors. The two certainly weren't acting like this during the Games. Well, it kind of was a threat to behave when someone could link the two of you together at the drop of a temper tantrum. Still, it was a fascinating puzzle to work at. Why were people so illogical about these things?

"Oi, popsicle dick," Gray broke into his thoughts and kicked him hard enough there'd be a bruise later. He couldn't resist giving a kick back. Just a kick though because he'd hate to waste all of Juvia's love and effort in the mix he was currently stirring with a spoon. "You done stirring that? It's looking a little fucked up."

Lyon peered at the bowl. It did, indeed, look a little "fucked up." But who knew. Maybe it was supposed to look like that. They'd measured everything out perfectly and blended it in. Maybe the lumps were supposed to melt flat in the oven? Experimentally, he flatted one with the back of the spoon. It made a horrible squishing sound and spit a tiny bit of undigested flour up at the pressure. Well, that wasn't good. Cupcakes probably shouldn't be squirting their insides out like that, right?

"Hmm, what's left, oh brother of mine?"

Lyon smirked when Gray twitched. Why bother with petty and unoriginal nicknames when blood titles were so much more effective. All he had to do was say it in the correct tone and Gray looked like ants were crawling all over his flesh.

"Quit being a creep, Lyon. Uh, salt."

"Salt. Is that all? It appears we're all out. Why don't you go to the girl's side and fetch some?"

"Why don't you, Romeo? Since you're sexing them up with your pervy eyes anyway."

Lyon drew himself up in indignation, "I was merely admiring Juvia's poise in the kitchen. There was nothing perverted about  _my_  thoughts, brother. Ones who dwell in glass houses should not be casting ice cannonballs!"

"Oh yeah?"

Lyon replied honestly, "Yes."

Lyon sputtered in surprise and fury as the cookbook smacked him dead on. Calmly, he rubbed his nose and regarded the asshole in front of him. He was going to pay for that. Oh yes, he was going to pay if he broke Lyon's perfect nose. Lyon had taken many pains to keep his nose intact despite the many vicious fights he'd been in. The fact that it was still straight and perfect sang like a cherub to his incredibly skill and luck. And, if he recalled correctly, the last person to smash his nose was the very same one standing in front of him. If some snot-nosed, whiny dickless wonder had broken it while screwing around, there was going to be a frozen hell to pay. Blood came off on his finger tips and he flicked it off with disgust. Blood was only good if it was from someone else. Like, say, the bastard in front of him.

Lyon causally grabbed the spoon, after sending a silent apology to Juvia, and flicked a huge gob of cake batter right into Gray's laughing face. It splattered all over him in the most satisfying way Lyon could ever imagine. So satisfying, he couldn't resist launching another batter-ball right at Gray's open and shocked mouth. It was a dead ringer.

The cocky ice mage dived to the side right as a bag of sugar flew at him. It crashed behind him, exploding all over the floor in a shower of white crystals. Rolling, the cake batter bowl clutched in a death grip to his chest, Lyon hid behind the counter. With a smooth, swift and practice movement, he popped up, cocked the spoon back, yelled a war cry, hit Gray with the batter, threw the spoon which also hit and ducked back down to safety. He congratulated himself on a job well done.

Until Gray vaulted over the counter with a stick of butter clutched in both hands, which he stabbed down like a gooey, yellow knife. All Lyon saw was his boots aiming for his precious nose again. What was it with Gray and aiming for the face?

Scrambling wildly, Lyon bolted to his feet to avoid the stab and skittered on the tile floor, cursing his lack of traction with boots. He ducked as eggs flew towards his unprotected back, conjuring up an ice shield and whirling around to face the attack. One errant egg flew wide and nailed his pants with a crunch and a splat. Shaking his leg ruefully, he was taken off-guard as Gray launched the mixer next. It clanged against the ice shield, cracking and shattering it, and covering Lyon with shards of ice.

Lyon cast around for something to throw, preferably sharp and pointy and deadly. His eyes landed on the innocent little colored bottles waiting to be used in the frosting.

Snatching up the tiny, delicate bottles of food coloring, Lyon popped the tops off and waited. The range on these little bad boys couldn't be that great. Should he put them in an ice ball that would explode on contact, change the floor to an icy hell and have Gray go down or just let Gray close in and them nail him full force with the dye? So many choices.

He decided that for the insult to his face, twice, that Gray should be on his knees. Or back. Back was pretty appropriate all things considered.

"Ice Make: Floor!"

He felt incredibly vindicated using Gray's dirty little trick against him. The look of surprise on his face was exquisite. Although, he belatedly realized he should have paid more attention to the angle, speed and trajectory of the other ice mage before making him lose his footing. Gray snagged his ankle as he flew by, carried by his momentum, and dragged Lyon down with him. Lyon decided he might as well hit him now with the food dye, squirting all four colors out at Gray's sliding body in some kind of weird, gruesome modern art pattern. Both of them turned into a yelling, kicking and punching and sliding heap that went across the kitchen floor, through the swinging doors and out into the bar.

Meredy poked her head out, "Are you guys okay?"

"Gray-sama? Lyon?"

"So does this mean we win by default? Yay, Juvia, we win! We should have made this a punishment game first!" The evil laugh Meredy had put his to shame, Lyon realized with a shiver. He did not want to play any sort of game with her at all! Okay, not true, there were  _some_  rather private games he wouldn't mind playing with her.

"We are fine," Lyon remarked, picking himself up and offering a hand down to Gray. Hesitantly, Gray took it and Lyon hauled him up. The two of them must look a sorry mess, Lyon thought to himself. He half expected to go on a spinning, puke-inducing ride from hell at any moment for his childish and destructive behavior. Instead he saw lots of grins of admiration and congratulations. What happened to the poor chairs and tables in the hall made far more sense now.

"Good, then you can clean up the kitchen. Honestly guys, can't you behave? You're adults after all," Meredy tsked her tongue and disappeared back through the doors.

Both of them started to head back towards the kitchen when they were cut off by a rather unhappy looking woman.

"Eh-heh, Mira… I can explain," Gray stuttered looking like he'd lost the most massive paintball war of all time. He was covered from head to toe in red, yellow, blue and green squiggles and blotches. Lyon eyed the white haired bartender with curiosity. "It was totally, one hundred percent this bastard's fault!"

Mira turned her sweet smile on Lyon.

"Oh, I suppose if our guest made the mess, I shouldn't be too angry. Right?"

Somehow this seemed like a trick question.

"GET IN THERE AND CLEAN IT UP!" Faster than a flicker of the eye, an enrage demon was standing before them. Gray screamed a little and grabbed onto Lyon for safety. Lyon would have taken the opportunity to make fun of it him but it seemed his lungs were paralyzed with absolute terror at the deadly demonic waves pouring off the furious woman. He seriously thought he was going to die. This was way worse than anything Papa Jellal could manage. Or even the mighty Erza Scarlet. Where the hell had this woman been hiding all this nightmare-inducing terror in her curvaceous and sweet and bubbly body? Lyon was beginning to understand why all the 'babes' were in Fairy Tail; because they were all hiding great evil. Seeing it from the stands at the Games was completely different from being face-to-face with it. No wonder Jenny lost so spectacularly. He felt mildly bad for the teasing he gave her about it when they ran into each other in the halls. But only mildly. Mostly he was still too terrified to move or think. "And don't ever set foot in my kitchen again, do you hear me boys?"

Nodding vigorously, they ran past her into the relative safety of the kitchen.

It was in a pretty sorry state. The mixer was totaled. Food was everywhere, splattered against every surface including the ceiling. Sugar and flour covered the floor. Eggs were broken all over the place. Lyon groaned at the thought of demeaning himself by scrubbing the floor on his hands and knees.

"Lyon, you are hurt," Juvia pointed out in surprise. Meredy looked too and nodded. No one mentioned Gray's wonderful shiner or Lyon's magnificent art made with the food dye. Juvia hustled up, eyeing Gray sneakily from the corner of her eye, clearly worried about her love interest too, and tried to make Lyon sit down on the counter edge. He practically cracked up laughing at the look of shock on his brother's face. Oh ho, he nailed it. Gray certainly did not like being ignored; the big baby had gotten used to Juvia's undivided attention and now it was being withheld. He half expected the moron to start throwing a tantrum.

"Juvia will get the medical supplies," Juvia remarked practically and started to walk towards the back of the kitchen. "Lyon should not allow these to become infected."

3…2…1…

"Don't waste your time on him, Juvia." Gray grabbed her wrist to stop her. She paused, composing herself at his touch, and Lyon could see from his position her entire face was beet red. But she held firm. Juvia's determination was astounding sometimes; Lyon hadn't thought she could keep herself together so well. "Even the germs wouldn't infest his nasty body. Meredy can deal with it."

"I can?" Meredy asked looking like a shot up innocent by-stander and pointing to her face. She looked between Juvia and Gray for a moment in confusion before announcing, "OH, yes, of course, Gray-SAMA. Why don't you and Juvia start cleaning up. I'll take care of Lyon." Lyon leered a little bit at her choice of words and she flushed all the way up her neck and face catching his look. The shade of pink on her skin almost matched her curly, long hair. She swatted in his direction but fell a little short due to the distance, "And then we'll help you."

Walking over, she grabbed his hand and dragged him off to go sit in the small area to the side of the kitchen away from all the equipment and mess. Pushing him down into the chair, she went to the locker at the side. Juvia must have told her where to go at some point. Probably when Lyon was zoned out and internally cackling at this dumb brother.

"Really, how old are you?" Meredy pouted as she pulled out the first aid kit. She opened the lid and flicked through the contents knowingly. Pulling out some ointment, cotton balls and disinfectant, she shut the lid.

"Twenty six," Lyon answered, watching her lazily. He wasn't particularly bothered by the cuts or bruises forming all over him from the scuffle. But he did enjoy the thought of being fussed over, so he certainly wasn't going to say that out loud. Meredy wasn't too bad as a replacement minion, for the time being.

Plus, looking past her, he noted with some twisted sort of pride, that Gray actually was helping Juvia clean up. He was being a dumbass klutz about it but he was genuinely trying to help. Proof he could go five minutes without being a total dickhead. And Juvia could go five minutes without turning into a rabid fangirl. There may be some hope yet for this absurd mission.

"Oh, so the same age as Jellal."

Lyon really rather she not bring that up. Aside from the fact it highlighted a rather large age gap, he really didn't want to have much in common with the man that could potentially wipe him off the face of the earth for thinking his ward was hot.

"That is not a pleasant thought."

"Well, it's the only basis I really have for a relationship, if you can call the pitiful attempts Jellal makes a relationship. It's not like there was anyone else growing up." She shrugged, looking a little lonely. He fought off the urge to hug her and manfully kept his hands to himself.

"Not Ultear and Jellal?"

"Uggh, why would you even say such a thing? Now I'm going to have nightmares! Lyon!" He chuckled as she shot him a nasty look while soaking the cotton ball. Well, it might be a perturbing thought to her, but it made perfect sense to him. Six years was a long time for a completely platonic relationship between the two adult mages, especially if they were ever close enough to share or mix their magics. Longer than six years, if you considered the history between them before they formed their guild. It took a high degree of intimacy and trust for that sort of thing to happen. Not necessarily a sexual or romantic one, but it was, more often than not. After all, who else would you trust that deeply? He would be more surprised if something wasn't going on.

Mages were such funny creatures. There were ones like the Dragon Slayers, who were insanely picky about their partners, and then there were others who were so promiscuous that a solid relationship was impossible. They flitted from partner to partner, fulfilling some innate need. It depended on the type of magic, he supposed, since some magics required more care than others.

Unfortunately for Juvia, ice tended to thaw slowly without any heat to hurry it along.

He winced a slightly as Meredy pressed disinfectant into a particularly deep cut.

"Sorry! That wasn't on purpose."

He gave her a gentle half smile, "I know. Don't worry; I'm not that breakable."

"You're pretty banged up for just a little fight with Gray." She pointed out with an artful blow to his ego wiping the smile off his face. She could use some tact.

"I wasn't expecting that bastard to throw metal at my shield," Lyon grumbled, secretly happy the man did. It was worth a few cuts for this sort of attention. "I made it for eggs not mixers. And ice is sharp when it shatters. It's no big deal, so don't worry. This happened often when we were boys and sparring. It drove Ur crazy, our incessant bickering. She refused to patch us up after a while, so we had to patch each other up. Oftentimes one of us would come out looking like a mummy." He chuckled at the fond memory. It had taken a long time but he'd finally gotten to the point where his memories of his childhood were fond ones not traumatic ones. Not that those still didn't slip into his nightmares but they were rare in his daytime thoughts.

He looked up to find her staring at him with the cotton ball clutched between her fingertips ready for another dab.

"Is there something on my face?"

She started and blushed, "Ah, no, sorry… it just sounds like you and Gray were really close."

"We were, as children, yes."

"Well, I think it's cute. That must be why you two are acting like giant children now. You want to be close again! That's so sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet," she teased, giving him a cheeky smile. He mock growled at her insinuation that he was acting like a giant child. He was the mighty Lyon Vastia; there was nothing childlike about him!

He was about to tell her so when he realized how close her face was to his. Sadly, her eyes seemed to be latched on a cut on his forehead rather than his kissable lips. He tried to move his head to fix that but she grabbed his face to hold him still. It squished uncomfortably and he sighed in disappointment but held still obligingly.

"I think this one needs some stitches or it'll scar."

He shrugged. He already had plenty of scars. A tiny one on his forehead wouldn't even make the slightest bit of difference.

"It'll ruin your handsome looks," she pointed out pragmatically.

"It'll merely add to my appeal. Women love scars," he retorted playfully trying to ignore the touch of her fingers on his face.

She leaned closer and he was suddenly having a hard time breathing. He was acutely aware of how close her body was to his and how close her face was to his and how close he was to losing it. This was so fucking bad. Bad, bad, bad. Warm, sweet lips were pressed against his forehead, lingering and chaste and sweet. Lyon felt something melting inside of him. It was awkward and warm and gooey… he thought it might be his insides liquefying to sugar.

Then she slapped a big, ugly bandage on him, ruining the moment completely. Tact, she seriously needed some.

"Well, then, I'll seal it up with a butterfly band-aid and a kiss, and you'll have another scar for wooing the ladies," she gave him a wink and let go while walking back towards the kitchen. "C'mon, you made the mess; you shouldn't make Juvia clean it all up for you."

He carefully touched his forehead, his heart pounding, and he realized at that exact moment how screwed he really was. Lyon didn't often fall in love, since most women weren't exactly up to his standards, but he knew himself. When he fell, he fell hard.

And, boy, he'd picked a hell of a cliff this time.


	5. Chapter Four

 

Chapter Four

 

Gray lay in bed, thinking. Light seeped through his parted curtains reminding him that he should probably get up soon now that it was daybreak. But he lingered anyway. Thinking was something he often did because his bed was relaxing and private and he often had a lot of think about. Plus, it was quiet, since he lived alone in a tiny studio apartment. It wasn't like he spent a lot of time there, so the space was bare, but he did like his bed. Soft and comfortable and inviting, that was his bed. He bought it on purpose to be something he enjoyed coming home to. Generally, the first thing he did after a long mission was to flop on the bed face-first and just lay there, soaking it in. Yes, Gray loved his bed. But Gray didn't necessarily like to think because thinking was messy but he couldn't seem to help it. His brain just wouldn't shut up sometimes. Not that he'd ever let anyone else know; he didn't want to be painted an egghead or something.

And now it was analyzing one thing: Juvia.

He didn't know what there was to analyze here exactly. Surely it couldn't be nearly as fucking complicated as his asshole brain made it out to be. She liked him. She liked him a lot. This was not a mystery.

The mystery was on his end.

Why the fuck was he such a damn social retard?

This wasn't rocket science or anything. The answer had to be pretty damn straight forward if he thought about it enough. Another five minutes passed and he had nothing. Other than reconfirming he was a social retard three dozen more times.

Grunting, he dragged himself out of bed. Clearly, he wasn't getting anymore sleep this morning, and his self-esteem couldn't take anymore retard confirmation from his brain. He might as well get dressed and go to the guild. If Natsu or Gajeel was there he could blow off some steam and do less of this thinking shit.

Unfortunately, he was too early for pretty much everyone in the guild, including Juvia, Natsu and Gajeel. Ordering breakfast, and determined to actually get to eat it this time, he sat down at the bar.

"What's up, tiger? You look distracted."

His first thought was, why the hell was Cana always at the bar? Didn't she ever sleep or go on missions? It was the ass crack of dawn practically, and he knew she wasn't a morning person. Disheveled and underkept, she blinked at him lazily, waiting for an answer. Did she just sleep here? Here as in, did she sleep on the bar? Did she sleep at all? Maybe she was awake because she never went to bed in the first place.

As if reading his thoughts, she shrugged and muttered, "Hangover cure, Mira's got the best ones."

Gray glanced over at Cana, mind a million miles away.

Something had been weighing on his mind for the past few days since Lyon and Meredy crashed in here like cronies from Hell. Before that actually. And it wasn't like he could talk to his guy friends about it. Natsu was dense as a rock about anything considered normal in regards to girls. The guy regularly broke into Lucy's apartment and didn't do anything else. And he scrubbed Erza's back like they were still kids. Puberty was going to hit him like a bitch of a blow, Gray was sure of it. Gajeel was hardly any better with his not-so-secret thing for Levy, and besides, he'd ride Gray's ass endlessly if he caught a whiff of anything remotely embarrassing. Loke was an option, although the two had a bit of a falling out over that whole return to the Celestial World thing. It'd be hard to catch him just to chat, since Lucy really only summoned her spirits when she needed them. Although the damn lion could open his own gate if he wanted to. He probably did all the time just to cruise the town, the player. Maybe Gray should go to their old haunts just to see, but that was a pretty dicey proposition. It could definitely land him in some hot water with their unwelcome guests if they found him wandering around down in that part of town. He really didn't feel like explaining that one, especially to Juvia. Loke would be pissed to hell if the whole area ended up under water and ruined his fun.

If he considered his girl friends, they'd probably be a better choice. Except he was convinced each and every one of them was against him. Heaven forbid he do anything to make Juvia upset because he'd get a bunch of evil glares. Like it was his fault! Okay, most of the time it was his fault, but not all the time. Erza had already given him a clear ultimatum during the Games, so he knew she was probably not going to be very forgiving if he did something stupid. Lucy would probably try to be helpful, but with her big mouth, it was only a matter of time before whatever he said was all over the guild. Wendy was just too young to be of any help at all. Plus, the better half of Team Natsu – what a hideously revoltingly awful name - weren't expected back from their mission for a few days. The other girls… just no. Mira was the ultimate no.

Sighing, he looked at Cana again out of the corner of his eye. Well, there was always her. They'd been tight for a long time while they were growing up, since they were basically the first two kids to join the guild. Before Team Natsu, the two of them and Loke hung out a lot, even went on jobs together. He kind of felt bad now that he thought about it. Once Lucy arrived at the guild, he kind of just walked off and left her at the bar. Literally.

Seems today was Gray-was-a-big-dick week. He needed to stop thinking and be a little more like Natsu, for his sanity.

"Cana, can I talk to you?"

"Awfully polite all of a sudden," she said suspiciously, holding her morning beer – he questioned if that was her so-called 'hangover cure'— closer like it was a trick and he might snatch it. She was actually eating some food with her drink though, so he assumed she was pretty sober at the moment. Not that it made a difference, really, since Gray couldn't always tell sober Cana from buzzed Cana and occasionally drunk Cana too. She was a pretty high functioning drunk via practice.

He ignored that and offered, "I'll buy you some drinks, okay? Consider it payment to lending an ear."

"Now yer talkin'!"

"First off, I'm sorry I joined Team Natsu and left you out." It was hard to force the apology out. Gray never apologized, ever. But recently he'd been watching Natsu and Lucy, and he had to admit he liked the amount of give between them. He'd even given it a shot himself, since Lucy was a pretty forgiving kind of girl; she made it pretty easy to apologize and mean it. Others… well, they were harder, but Mavis knew he didn't want to end up like Jellal, socially crippled and decrepit with regret. Not to mention saddled with some crazy teenager girl. Even if she was his niec—cousin, cousin. He could manage cousin; niece was just too weird. Like inbreeding weird or something. Plus, he wasn't old enough to have a niece that was practically the same age or older than he was. Was she older? Damn Tenrou. She probably was older than him by now.

Anyway, it was time to start apologizing before he became a social pariah.

May Laxus strike him down. Or his pride. Either or.

She stared at him as if he were a new species of spider or something. Like she couldn't decide to scream, squish him or be fascinated.

"That's okay, kid," she slapped him on the back forcefully and he almost rammed his nose into the bar at the unexpected assault. Pushing off the edge, he scooted his chair further out of reach. "I'm gettin' too old to go runnin' around on the crazy missions you boys love so much. Plus, it ain't quite the same without Mr. Playboy. So what's the dealio?"

"You might be getting too fat… with all that beer you drink to be any help on a mission anyway," Gray said to himself and got smacked. Cana glared at him, clearly having heard it and not approving in the slightest. Belated he realized that just because Lucy took the fat jokes in stride, other women might not be so forgiving. Man, Natsu was a lucky guy, and the dumbass didn't even know it. "Okay, okay, lay off, woman! Anyway, I got this problem."

"Yea, we all got problems."

"No, this is different. I… I've… oh shit, I can't even fucking say it out loud. I've been… I… I think about Juvia."

"…Okay…"

"Like… all the time! Like the other day, I was walking past a store and I saw a dress and I pictured her in it and I've never done that before. And the day before that I was eating some ice cream and I wondered if Juvia would like the new flavor the store was offering because I know she likes mint. And before that I… yeah, I'm not telling you that. Plus, every time I get near her I start blushing. What the hell! Men don't blush! But why is Juvia camping out in my head all of a sudden?"

"Stop, stop," Cana requested, putting up her hand and wincing artistically. "I get it."

"You do? What's wrong with me?"

She blinked.

"Ya don't know?"

"No! That's why I'm asking you!"

"Oh my god, my little boy is growin' up!" Cana gushed with fake pride while laughing so hard she doubled over. He gave her a droopy eyed look with his bottom lip poked out to show his lack of amusement. She finally got it under control and smirked, "Good thin' I wasn't drinkin'. That'd be a waste of alcohol if ya made me spit it out."

"Never mind," Gray growled, giving up. He didn't have time for games. He seriously had to figure out what was going on here. Was it a spell? Did Juvia try to slip him a love potion again (thankfully the first time it was fairly harmless – Gray and Natsu had to go "remind" the crook who sold it to her not to be such a cheating asshole picking on girls)?

"Oi, ya seriously don't know? That's so sweet! Gray, ya've got a crush," the woman rolled her eyes as she said it but that devil's smile lurked on her lips. Gray was going to regret this. Gray was already regretting this.

"I don't get crushes!" he protested, the word rolling off his tongue like one would say an STD. A crush? Him? He never got crushes! Crushes were for girls and wimps. Plus, a crush on Juvia? Was Cana out of her mind? The alcohol had obviously finished obliterating the rest of her brain cells.

"Sure sounds like one to me," the woman drawled in reply.

"But… on Ju—." Abruptly his voice squeaked out as the object of their conversation walked into the room. Clearing his throat, he tried to finish the sentence, quieter, but his voice just refused to cooperate. It was like he was being throttled by a shy attack. Gray had never been shy in his life. Okay, maybe a little bit, but not with Cana. But dammit if he couldn't get the words past his lips while Juvia was in the room.

Cana just sat there knowingly smug, the witch.

Fortunately, or rather unfortunately because it pissed him off, she was with Meredy and Lyon. Meredy was probably perverting her with some weird thoughts and Lyon very blatantly just copped a feel then winked at Gray. Juvia was pretty oblivious to Gray at the moment, her hands being full enough just keeping her overwhelmed self together without melting into a puddle of stress.

"Yer face is bright red, Gray," Cana whispered dramatically to him. He wanted to snap at her to shut up but he couldn't. "Oh this is too precious! Where's Reedus when ya need him?"

Balling up his fists, he got ready to march over there and tell Lyon off. But Lyon gave him a shrewd look and the three swept out of the room together before he could even get off the bar stool. That fucking bastard! He was going to kill him. Kill him dead. Deader than dead!

"Sit down," Cana advised. "We gotta talk here, tiger."

"About what?" Gray asked, still ready to go beat the tar out of Lyon. He still hadn't had the chance to pay him back for the lovely shiner he received yesterday in the kitchen.

"Sit yer ass down, or I shout yer crush ta the whole guild."

Gray promptly sat down with his hands in his lap. Erza's threats couldn't possibly have made him move faster or behave better.

"Are you blackmailing me?" Gray hissed, and Cana gave him a level look, "Nah, I'd never do that to my boy. I'm just hitting you with a stupid tax."

"I'm not stupid," he muttered but stayed put. Who knew what the woman had planned. It couldn't be good. Why was he so dumb? He shouldn't have said anything.

Cana rolled her eyes and said something under her breath that suspiciously sound like I'm not drunk enough for this.

"Look… this is really simple, see? You like Juvia, she likes you… go fuck her."

Gray choked and coughed.

No one was ever going to accuse Cana of being a romantic. Or of giving out good love advice for that matter.

"I don't—what? No! I mean… no. Why'd you tell me that?" Gray bit his tongue before he blurted out that Juvia had been fueling his fantasies for some time now. Fantasies that involved more than just what he had on hand. Literally. Just the thought of doing something so… crude… made him groan, and not necessarily in embarrassment.

Besides, if he wanted to do that, he would have already. He doubted Juvia would turn him down. But Gray wasn't that kind of guy. Juvia wasn't a prostitute or a toy to him. He respected her way too much to just use her for his own gain if there was nothing behind the lust and an end game the second the sheets cooled.

"What about you and that guy from the Puppy guild?" Gray tried to evade giving away any more of his secrets to this evil woman. It was better to focus on something else. Women liked to talk about themselves, right?

"Bacchus? Fuck buddies." Gray choked on air at the blunt answer. He had blurted it out without thinking in annoyance, and that was information he really didn't need to know, imagine or have anything to do with ever. Cana shrugged nonchalantly while giving him a half-assed thump on the back, "Ya asked. And he's really good in the sack, if ya know what I mean. He does this thin' where… yea, it's amazing."

Gray now officially wanted to cry. Just a little. To wash out his eyes.

"No, I mean, he doesn't mean anything more to you?"

"Well, I suppose he'd an alright drinking buddy too, the bastard. And, 'sides, ya know I don't hold with relationships of the romantic kind. Fuck 'em and leave 'em." She gave him a sly wink and looked him up and down with a predatory smile, "If they're good, I may go back for seconds… or thirds… or make it a semi-permanent fling sort of thing. Haven't gotten that far yet, so I don't know."

"That was awhile back," Gray frowned uncomfortably, stabbing at his eggs with the fork. For some reason, he really hadn't, you know, been that interested in other girls lately. Not that Cana's offer wasn't good or anything, if she was serious and not being a fucking flirt teasing him, but it just didn't feel right. What if Juvia found out? Aside for the concerning bit about Cana's safety as a dubious love rival, Gray found he really didn't want Juvia to know. Sure, it was ages ago but… it just felt weird. Wrong.

Cana broke out in an amused cackle which made him sink in his stool, "Yer embarrassed! Awww, ya got it bad!"

"Shhhhh!"

"I should help ya, if ya got it that bad."

"No, you shouldn't," Gray retorted viciously. "I'm good without your help. You're going to tell Mira!"

"Tell me what?"

Shit.

Cana waved the white haired bar tender off flippantly, giving the other woman a sly glance, "Gray owes me some drinks. Make sure it goes on his tab. Make it expensive."

"Oh, is that it?" Mira cocked her head, blue eyes flicking between the two suspiciously. Cana gave her a nonchalantly look and took a swig of the beer. Man, she was good. Gray tried to school his face into the surliest and ugliest frown he could manage. It wasn't hard when he imagined what the witch was going to do to his wallet with her nasty drinking habit. But it was that or she blurted his secret all over the guild.

"Yeah," Gray grunted, "Lost a bet." Or my damn fucking mind, he echoed in his head.

Cana leaned forward after Mira wandered away and grinned, "Nosey one, ain't she? Wouldn't want to talk too loudly. Why don't we have a little card readin' this afternoon? On the house, tiger, just for you. All special-like.

Gray opened his mouth to argue and she gave him a warning look. Sulkily, he shoved some scrambled eggs in his mouth to keep it from running off and getting him in more trouble. He was still shoving eggs in his mouth when Meredy sat down next to him looking a little rough. He took in her disheveled state out of the corner of his eye and stabbed a pancake.

"You better not have done what I think you did," he grumbled, in the worst mood ever.

"Had a sleep over with Ju—oh… OH… Gray!"

He shrugged. It could happen, he thought moodily. Probably a crass way to approach the subject, but he really had to say something. Not just for her sake but for Lyon's as well.

Maybe Gray wasn't up to code on the whole romance business half of this crapshoot but he was a pretty pragmatic guy when it came down to it. All he could see was a ton of problems if Meredy fell for Lyon. Lyon's guild master did not like Sherry and Ren's relationship, and Gray could only imagine the vicious old woman's displeasure if her beloved star progeny hooked up with someone from what was practically a guild full of criminals. Plus, not that his brother was a pedo-freak or anything, because Lyon wasn't, but it was kind of creepy that he was in his mid-twenties. Gray tried to imagine dating someone that old and he just couldn't. And the biggest reason of all had blue hair and a nasty magic power and newly-awakened daddy issues. And he would probably hold Gray responsible, that fucker. Because this was totally Gray's fault, obviously. He was expected to walk an otter on a shoestring, that's how impossible his mission was. A slippery, cute, playful yet utterly devious otter who had a thing for white haired ice mages…

"Just sayin'," he shrugged, trying to ease up. Yelling at her or being snarky wasn't going to do anything. He needed to approach this coolly, rationally. "He's a big dick…" Gray rethought that terminology with a groan. He did not need to imply that his brother was well-endowed. "I mean, he's not right for you, Meredy. He may seem all suave and shit, and don't get me wrong cuz I love him like a brother, but it's not a good move if you think about it a little. Besides, you don't even have a postal address. We get to see you and Jellal like every few months. Not a lot of consistency, right? I guess flings are fun and all but…" He glanced at Cana out of the corner of his eye but she was engrossed in her breakfast all of a sudden.

Gray did not possibly think anything could be colder than being thrown practically naked in the snow by Ur as a child. The world just proved him wrong. The look he was getting right now was bone-chilling frigid.

"Love him like a brother, huh?" she asked in a tone that matched her look. He gulped, not sure how the fuck this happened. He was supposed to be lecturing her not the other way around. Erza made it look so easy; all she had to do was drop a command and people did it. That was insanely not fair that one of the most socially clueless people in the guild could do lecturing so easily. Meredy ignored his abort, abort face and added, "And what about me?"

"Like a sister…?" Gray tried realizing it was pretty true. She was like his baby sister or something… how the hell had she moved from distance niece to baby sister? In, like, three days.

"I don't need another big brother, Gray. One is more than enough. And there's nothing going on between Lyon and I; we're just friends. Not exactly fling-material, as you so crassly called it, jerk. Besides, I don't tell you what to do with your love life."

Technically, she did, but he was not going to argue the point right now.

She looked like she was going to tear into his ass a little more when Juvia sat down in between them. Either she was off in Juvialand or she purposely stepped into the middle of their fight. Gray was a little distracted though because his brain got all fuzzy and he'd forgotten what they were even fighting about. She looked a little more chipper than her pink haired friend from god knows what they did at their little get together – Gray really didn't want to know what the fuck girls did at those things – but she wasn't as done up as usual. No make-up, no special hair-do, causal clothing. His eyes were drawn to her brightly colored nails, painted to look like an ocean. He wondered if Meredy did it but that thought was cut off as his eyes traced her graceful, long fingers. They tapped on the bar lightly as she settled on the stool, flashing them both a jubilant smile.

His eyes wandered up her arm and across her as she ordered a fruit smoothie from Lisanna. Her hair was pulled up into a sloppy ponytail and the tee-shirt she was wearing hugged all the right places just tight enough to make a statement. Daringly, he glanced at her shorts, which were a hell of a lot shorter than anything else she normally wore. His brain practically stuttered out when he realized they were sleeping shorts not daytime wear. And she wasn't even wearing any shoes. She'd stumbled down here in her PJs! Maybe she was too far gone into Juvialand to even notice she hadn't gotten dressed yet. Mentally face palming, he realized she probably wasn't even wearing a bra, and oh fucking hell, he had to check, didn't he?

"Juvia…"

"What is it, Gray-sama?" she questioned, looking at him with sleepy eyes and smiling. He could see the critical pair of emerald eyes judging him behind her.

"Uh, nothing. It's just… you're not really dressed…"

"Oh. Juvia often comes down to get a smoothie before getting ready for the day," she beamed, looking pleased at his observation. Her face fell abruptly and she panicked, "Juvia is sorry Gray-sama has to see her like this. Now Gray-sama will think Juvia is a slob!"

The judging continued silently. Nothing like a little pressure. Now Gray was starting to panic.

"No… no… you look fine!" Gray blurted out, kicking himself. You look fine? That's the best he could do? Smooth, totally smooth. He choked out, "Great, you look great, Juvia."

She paused to look at him like a deer in the headlights, and he felt his heart stop. This was a moment of truth. Roadkill or freedom? Was she going to cry and drown them all or was she going to launch a rocketship off to her private dreamland?

"Juvia looks… great?" Her lip trembled a little. He nodded, blushing a little. She looked more than great. He wanted to tell her that but the words got stuck. Her beautiful eyes teared up a little, thick lashes glistening, and he gulped silently. Suddenly, she launched herself off the stool at him. Reflexes kicking in, he caught her against him and steadied them both against the bar before giving her a little push back towards the stool.

Internally, Gray was burning with the embarrassment of a thousand and one suns. She was definitely not wearing a bra. His hands had accidentally confirmed that.

"Did you hear that Meredy? Gray-sama said Juvia is beautiful!"

She jumped at him again, unable to contain herself.

He hadn't… not exactly. But that's what he wanted to say, so Gray kept his mouth shut. He also took the moment to try to pry Juvia off him. All that ended up happening with that was she was rubbing on him harder, trying to cling like a baby monkey. A really sexy baby monkey who needed to stop sexually assaulting him on accident! Without a bra!

"So he did," Meredy remarked, nonplussed. He wasn't out of her doghouse yet by a long shot. She took a sip of Juvia's abandoned smoothie, watching their antics coolly. "Juvia, you're choking him."

Gray coughed as Juvia let go abruptly and jumped back in embarrassment.

"Is Gray-sama alright?"

He nodded, still coughing. His inability to breathe and speak was more do to the lack of blood to his upper body than her arms around his neck. She hadn't been strangling him that hard compared to Natsu's chokeholds or Erza's killer moves.

"Juvia is so sorry!" she yelped, unconvinced. Rushing forward, she softly pounded and rubbed his bare back, which was not helping at all. Every touch just made it that much harder to catch his breath as the blood continued south. Regretfully, he gave her a little shove off and stepped away. It would be fucking embarrassing as hell to pass out in the middle of the guild. She gave him a soul rendering look at his rejection. Greeeaaaat, she was going to take this out of context. "Juvia hurt Gray-sama!"

"Gihi, woman, ya say that like it's a bad thing," Gajeel sniggered, red eyes dancing with cruel amusement. When did he scuttle in? And, the amusement was, predictably, directed at Gray. Gray didn't know what kind of bizarre friendship the two had – if it could be called a friendship—but Gajeel not-so-subtly let his disapproval of Gray show. But, somehow, Gray seemed to be the only one who caught it. Juvia seemed absolutely oblivious. "It'd say it's an improvement of Stripper."

Meredy eyed Gajeel, her eyes lighting up in recognition and a smile curling across her lips. Gray didn't even want to know what she thought of that big douchebag that made her smile like that. Ignorance was survival all of a sudden. Gajeel seemed to sense her attention and eyed her back warily. She gave him a toothy smile and he jerked his head back in surprise at her boldness.

Gray smirked and threw Gajeel's earlier words back at him, "Scared of a little girl, ironhead?"

"N-never!"

"You should be," Gray muttered and earned a smack. He ignored it, watching Juvia's retreating form. It seems she got too embarrassed and decided to hightail it back to the dorms while they were distracted by Gajeel. Watching her scantily clad, scantily for Juvia anyway, hips swaying and her hair bounce, he felt his stomach flutter.

Cana was right. He had it bad. The question was, could he ever man up and do something about it.


	6. Chapter 6

 

Chapter Five

 

"You're the bad guy! Bang!"

Unamused, Lyon grimly studied the tiny human before him. While he generally enjoyed the company of people, he really preferred that they be adult people. Children, toddlers and babies were simply too loud, too annoying, too messy and too needy.

This one especially so.

If anyone was going to be needy, it better be him.

Meredy gasped dramatically, clutching her chest and staggering like a drunk before collapsing to the ground with her tongue lolling out of her mouth and eyes rolled back. Limbs seizing, she slowly went motionless.

"Dee? Dee? K, you can get up now!" the child commanded impetuously, pointing at the 'body' on the floor.

All Lyon could think was the floor, no matter how zealously cleaned, had to be utterly filthy. This was a guild hall, after all. At this moment Meredy could be getting crumbs in her beautiful hair and sticky beer residue on her smooth skin. It was a crime. But nothing he had said had deterred her so far, and he resigned himself to watching the two play inside the hall, since it was too muddy and drizzly outside according to the spawn's parents. He thought children enjoyed that sort of thing - mud and filth.

The child drew closer, dropping her toy gun, and bent over with concern. Her hat flopped in her face, making her fall on her butt with an oof. Still, Meredy didn't move, and the child staggered to her feet. Thankfully, this child did not seem the type to scream that the world was ending over every single little thing. Brushing off her butt, she inched closer.

"Dee?"

"Rawr!"

The child screamed with hysterical laughter as the pink haired woman rolled over and latched onto her ankle dragging her down into a wiggling heap on the floor. Both screamed and laughed like the world depended on it, having a glorious time.

Lyon took another sip of his drink wondering what was so urgent that both Gray and Juvia were called away, leaving him and Meredy with the pint-sized facsimile of a human being. Gray assured him the girl was house broken at least. Or swaddled. Or whatever it was one did to those small creatures to contain their waste.

Meredy sat cross-legged, still giggling, pulling the child into her lap and cuddling her. Lyon squashed the jealousy bubbling up in his gut. It was a  _child_ , he informed it tartly. There was absolutely no reason to be up in arms over a  _child_  being cuddled and hugged and – she just kissed her. On the head, but it was a kiss!

"You're so cute, Asuka!" Meredy chirped, attacking the child's face over and over with her lips. Clumsily, the child tried to kiss her back, although not nearly so accurately or successfully. The two looked ridiculous, utterly ridiculous, locked in a kissyface war. Ridiculous. "You too, Dee!"

And it was then Lyon found himself kneeling on the floor stiffly, drink abandoned. Because he wanted to play too…

"I'm cute too," he offered, hopeful. She eyed him for a moment, assessing his motives, before laughing loudly and giving him a peck on the cheek, which was shamelessly blatant. Asuka watched, wide-eyed, staring.

"You look like Lucy and Natsu."

"Reeeeallly," Meredy rolled her tongue deviously.

"And mommy and daddy, too."

She flushed, shoving Lyon away with one hand. Cockblocked by a five year old. Tragic.

When Meredy wasn't looking, he stuck his tongue out at the mini human. In response, she gave a startled laugh then shot him with that stupid toy gun. He had to admit she was a pretty damn good shot for her age.

They were in the middle of a rousing game of patty cake when Lyon lost track of exactly what they were doing. He had thought it was patty cake, and he was smacking his palms like it was, but the girls had somehow shifted into a completely different clap game. One that left him sitting baffled on the sidelines, and slightly sulky.

"Hey, Asuka."

"Gray!"

Lunging to her feet, the little girl stumbled, and Gray easily caught her with his big hands before hoisting her up onto his hip. It was obviously that she was enamored with the other ice mage, judging by the way she clung to his neck and chattered in short sentences to him about 'Dee' and 'Lion.' Juvia sat watching Gray, a soft smile playing on her beautiful face. She was utterly charmed by how a tiny terror could bring Mr. Stick Up the Ass to his knees, figuratively, anyway. Probably literally too, if it came down to it. Gray looked like he might just take orders for the first time in his life.

"Uh oh Juvia, I think you have another love rival," Meredy snorted, getting to her feet and brushing off her knees, throwing her friend a grin. Juvia blinked out of whatever daydream she was having and replied mildly, "Juvia does not mind Asuka as a love rival. Asuka is… practice."

Lyon  _may_  have swallowed his tongue.

Gray, not having heard her, turned towards Lyon, the child's bottom supported under his arms and her fingers playing with his necklace, like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"Cana says she'll give you two a reading, if you want, for watching Asuka for me while I went. I told her not to bother, but she felt like it was only fair or some shit like that. You might as well take her offer; she doesn't usually do it for free," Gray snorted a little at the last word. Lyon suspected this particular reading had not been free either. What part of his tiny little soul did he sell and why?

"I'll pass," Meredy remarked, holding her arms out for Asuka. "I'd rather play with this lovely little lady some more. Besides, I don't believe in that future reading stuff."

Gray rolled his shoulders and shrugged, "I've known Cana for a long time; she's top notch at what she does. It's not a parlor trick or anything… plus, it's free. Why not go?"

"You just want Asuka all to yourself," Meredy accused, eyes narrowed in suspicion when Gray didn't hand the child over like she asked. "Besides, what'd she tell you guys?"

"Some mumbo-jumbo about a book leading to good romantic fortune for me, and a bunch of stuff I didn't really get. Oh, and that I'll probably be—never mind." Gray shrugged uncomfortably, stumbling over the word romantic, while Juvia hovered behind him, totally zoned out like it was a trigger word for her. She shook her head negatively and added, "Cana said more than that! Cana was very helpful with all her cards. Juvia should be her passionate and cheerfulness self, and love will break into her life! Because Juvia has been waiting a long time to show her true feelings. Oh, and butterflies will show the way. Juvia doesn't understand that one though."

Lyon wasn't sure she remembered that bit right. Either that or Cana threw the reading because a blind person could read Juvia's true feelings about Gray.

Gray frowned, brows furrowed leaning back towards her unconsciously, "Juvia, Cana said you need to pay more attention to yourself, not your love life, remember? That whole bit about taking care of yourself and your self-esteem. She was pretty firm about that. She said it like five times."

Juvia nodded sagely in agreement, "And that will lead to romance! Juvia remembers Cana's every word!"

Gray just shrugged again, clearly having given up on the subject all together.

"I, for one, am very curious. I will allow my future to be read, although I already know it."

Meredy gave a pout, not expecting him to take up the offer. Truly, he was actually quite curious. Future magic was fickle at best, especially with cards, which had to be interpreted by the user, but it was free and if he had to see any more of Gray as a future-father, he was going to have to start taunting the man. Plus, this sounded immensely entertaining.

"Fine, I'll do it too! If all of you are getting your futures read, I want one too," Meredy announced with determination, like it was a competition.

"Fine, fine," Cana drawled, watching them lazily from the other side of the room. "Just get yer asses over here then. I ain't got all day."

She laid out the deck for them face down, gesturing for Meredy to go first. Tentatively, Meredy drew out seven cards one at a time and handed them back to the other mage. Cana flipped them around with flourish, arranging them in a semi-circle. She gestured vaguely for them to sit across from her on the bench, studying the cards with deep conversation.

"Ya want the long version or the short one?"

"S-short," Meredy stuttered, losing her nerve. Adding reluctantly, she fiddled with her fingers, "I don't really believe in this stuff. Ultear said that's not the way time works…"

"Eh, well, it's kinda like Carle's visions, girlie. They ain't always perfect but ya get the gist.  _You_  make the future, not the cards, cuz they're just a guide."

That sounded like some ass-covering if Lyon ever heard some.

"Well, short version is: don't judge others too harshly; don't let anyone run you and influence you in negative ways; oh juicy – seduction, nice, enjoy that one; take the first step and be bold; rethink your relationship in unconventional ways; and ooo, recently your mind has changed about familial ways. Haha, better stop playing with Asuka, kiddo, or ya might just want one yerself."

"That all sounds really generic," Meredy complained with a slight whine, sounding disappointed. "Like, what's really going to happen?"

"This ain't a crystal ball, girlie," Cana snorted, leaning back and reshuffling the cards with a few flicks. "'Sides, ya wanted the short version. I condensed it for ya. I don't showpony for free."

"But you gave Gray specific information." Cana looked annoyed at the compliant but rolled her eyes and complied, riffling through the deck and pulling out The Emperor. She glanced at it with a finely arched eyebrow, looking unsurprised, her eyes trailing over Lyon speculatively. The irony did not escape him but he kept his mouth shut. "Okay, kiddo, this is The Emperor, and the position you chose was The Present. This card represents rules and authority within the deck because he has the potential to influence and lead. When it's in the present, it means that you are in a position to either influence or be influenced. In regards to the other cards you pulled, you need to work hard to get what you want and take the first step despite outside influences. Honestly, I think I'm readin' this wrong but transportation will provide opportunity for achieving your goals. Dunno why though. Show 'em what ya got, basically, and don't give in!" Cana gave a rakish grin, "That's the Fairy Tail way, for an honorary Fairy Tail member."

Meredy looked contemplative, sitting thoughtfully next to Lyon while he picked his cards carefully. He studied each one before passing them over, enjoying the illustrations and names, even if he had no idea the meanings or symbolism behind them. It was clear the Card Mage had invested a great deal of money into this deck, and Lyon guessed she was hardly playing matchmaker with her best deck.

"Lovely. How many decks do you own?"

Cana hummed in surprise, her sharp eyes looking for the reason behind his question. Whatever she saw relaxed her. He was genuinely interested and it showed; he won many people over with his utter sincerity when he truly was interested in something. She thought about it for a moment, "There's lotsa different versions. The cards are all the same of course, but the illustrations ain't. I think I have over fifty. This one is my favorite though, The Marseilles, cuz it's one of the traditional decks. I dunno, I just like the bright colors and simplified images more than the glitzy modern ones. They enchanted me as a kid, y'know? Macao bought me a deck to shut me up cuz 'pparently have the gift of gab. Got me interested when I was pickin' a magic to learn."

She arranged the cards just as carefully, although in a different pattern, requesting he choose two more cards, before reading them. Surprised, she read them again, slower and more carefully. Making a small sound of exasperation, she shuffled them back into the deck and stowed it tidily away.

Turning to Lyon, she just remarked flippantly, "You're too awesome for my cards. Bastard."

"Sounds like someone is avoiding the issue," Lyon taunted in a pleasant voice. Cana didn't deign it, just rolled her shoulder. He wasn't particularly interested in his reading though; he had achieved his goal already.

"That's the glory of free, bud. My show, my rules." Cana clapped him on the shoulder and gave a friendly squeeze. He brushed off the indignation of her touching him without permission and brushed off her hand too. She shrugged again, not offended in the slightest, "You and Gray, two of a kind, Frosty. Might pow-pow a bit on that." Her eyes flickered between him and Meredy before she sauntered off towards the bar.

"Well, that's not fair," Meredy pouted. Lyon was touched she was irritated on his behalf… "You got to hear  _my_  fortune; I wanted to hear yours. It sounded really embarrassing too! Oh, you think Cana has the hots for you, and that's why she refused to say? I bet that's it." Or not.

"I doubt that woman has 'the hots', as you say, for anything other than Jim Bean and Jack Daniels," Lyon corrected her, disturbed by the very notion. Also, he was slightly – okay, very—pissed at being compared to Gray. He didn't know what she was insinuating, but it was insulting. He was nothing like that dumbass. Sure, they both used ice magic and they were raised by Ur (although he was her best student by far) and they were both guys and they both pretended to be utter assholes but loved their friends and family dearly… oh fuck him very much. Why was he even thinking about this? They were nothing alike.

For one, he had balls. Juvia most certainly would not have to wait so long for him to sweep her off her feet. He was a man of decisive action!

Turning his head to say something, his actual train of thought was derailed by a crushing, overenthusiastic hug complete with wandering hands. He didn't know if the hands were wandering of their own accord or on purpose but it was a very, very uncomfortable hug because of them. Catching her wrists, which turned out to be quite the tricky thing to do given their erratic path, he returned the hug and ruffled her hair, just to be annoying. She huffed, combing it back down, and swished around moodily, swinging in a way he swore she must have picked up from Cana.

So much for resisting outside influences, he thought with a shuddery breath he was glad she couldn't hear.

She bounded off back towards Gray, Juvia and the small one while he followed at a more sedate pace, hands in his pockets and eyes on her rear.

What the hell did that bar shark mean, conversing with Gray about how they were alike? Nonsense, utter nonsense.

"Asuka wants to play outside," Gray remarked when Lyon joined them. "She wants to play fairies and dragons. Don't ask, it's just a kid game. Can you help me set it up? I usually make an ice castle and stuff for the 'dragon' to destroy."

"And, who, pray tell, is the dragon?" Lyon had a sinking feeling he already knew. As if he'd make a glorious creation just for that cretin to destroy. Didn't the man destroy enough already?

"Flamebrain, usually. Sometimes the metalhead, if Juvia catches him. But I think he's gotten wise to that because he makes himself pretty scarce when we babysit…"

"We? You babysit with Juvia often it sounds like?"

"Well…" Suddenly Gray seemed to realize what he viewed as normal was probably not that normal. At least not for a guy who wasn't actually dating the girl doing the babysitting… although it sounded like  _he_  was the babysitter and Juvia was hanging around him. He bristled up, "Yeah. Why not? Bisca and Alzak need a babysitter, and it's not like they can trust Natsu or Laxus or Cana. So what if I babysit? What's it to you, dic—jerk? There's nothing wrong with it!"

"No, indeed, there is nothing wrong with it. I am just surprised you haven't terrified the poor child with your ugly face and poor attitude, to say nothing of your filthy mouth."

A sharp pain radiated up his leg. Offended, he looked down to see a very angry child glaring at him from under her hat, leg cocked back to kick him again. Dark eyes flashed and she pointed at him, "Stop being a meanie! You're the dragon today!"

Gray snickered.

"Child, I am no dragon. I am, if anything, an evil magician who raises demons." To demonstrate, he flicked his fingers, creating small ice imps that danced around, jeering. They danced around the three of them, making horrible faces and threatening gestures.

Horrified, Gray yelled, trying to shield the child's eyes, "Lyon!"

"Haha, those are funny. Natsu makes a fire dragon out of his breath; that's cool."

Lyon's eyebrow twitched, his patience wearing thin. He thought he was going easy on the little brat but clearly she needed a sterner lesson.

"Gray, you're the prince!" Asuka ordered, promptly ignoring his ice creations, and added turning around to find Juvia, "Juvia's the princess. Dee's the fairy godmother!"

"Yes, of course, great story writer," Gray said gravely, giving her a bow, much to her delight. "I would be honored to be your prince."

Lyon took the time to whip up some  _proper_  demons, making a dig at Gray's inability to create animated Ice Make creations. Gray scowled, in the middle of helping Juvia create a castle wall by combining their magics, and flipped him a very inappropriate gesture Lyon hoped the brat would see and copy in front of her parents. It would serve the bastard right. Then he threw a cage over the demons, making Lyon narrow his eyes. If that wasn't a dig at their fight on Galuna Island, then Gray was dumber than Natsu.

Meredy and Asuka sat to the side, Asuka giving the pink haired woman a makeover with some tinted lip gloss and glittery bright orange eyes shadow and two giant blobs of bright pink blush. A giant, awkward yellow bow was clamped on her hair, lopsided and sagging. The result was horrendous. She looked like an escaped circus clown. All she needed was a big, red nose. Lyon could have done a better job with his eyes closed, not that he knew anything about putting on makeup from helping Sherry or anything… nothing at all.

Walking over, he scooted the child over, making an offhand comment about how the castle didn't look quite right. She scuttled up and went to go oversee her perfect creation leaving him to view the mess up close. Sighing, he picked up a wash cloth and poured some makeup remover out of the bottle that had been provided by Juvia. Obviously, she and Gray had played faeries and dragons many, many times before if she thought to bring this out.

"Close your eyes."

"Lyon, you're going to ruin Asuka's hard work," Meredy complained softly, closing her eyes as he asked. He gentle stroked the cloth over the contours of her face, making sure not to get it in her eyes or mouth, tracing around her lips with care.

"It is an insult to your beautiful face to let you be in public like that," Lyon replied, rubbing the lip gloss off with a tissue in a few quick wipes. Once her face was clean, he made sure it was dry before rooting around in the kit. It was obviously a random assortment of half used or mostly empty makeups donated by the guild women for the child's amusement and play time.

"This isn't public; it's just us."

"I wish it were just us," Lyon remarked lowly under his breath before covering himself by remarking loudly, "Hold still."

"Lyon, I can do my own makeup," she protested opening her eyes and scowling at him. Her hand shot out, demanding the mascara he has pulled out of the kit. Fingers lingering, she hesitated in taking it from his open palm. Drawing her hand back, she huffed, "Fine. You can do my makeup. Just because I want to see how good you actually are, Mr. Perfect."

Patiently, he sorted through the makeup, finding colors that actually worked with her complexion and matched each other. Painting on each layer and smoothing it over, he took his time, ignoring Gray's calls and Asuka's demands. Brushing his fingers across her cheeks one last time, he sat back in satisfaction, surveying his work. While not to the highest standards, certainly not professional or even on par with the average women, it beat the hell out of the five year old's efforts. He wasn't sure if he should actually be proud of that though.

Silently, feeling self-conscious suddenly, he handed over the hand mirror, regretting stepping in. The fairy god mother would have been perfectly fine with orange eye shadow and green lip gloss. It was just a silly child's game after all.

"Wow, you did… a really good job. Thank you, Lyon." Once again, her compliments needed some work. But at least she sounded honest about her praise.

There was something undefinable in her tone as she caught his eye then quickly glanced away from him under her lashes. It made that warm, gooey feeling return and spread, fluttering obnoxiously in a dance around his insides. He did his best to ignore it because it made him want to demand a more appropriate payment for his labors, a true thanks. And that was not child-appropriate.

"You're welcome, Snoopy. But you don't need make up."

Lyon caught Gray's look of disapproval out of the corner of his eye and realized how close he was to the pink haired woman. Settling back on his heels, he put some much needed space between them, his heart beating erratically.

"Oh, Juvia wants to be next! Please, Lyon?" the water mage asked him sweetly, already a victim of the child and looking like a tribal warrior with streaks of vivid red slashed across her eyes and mouth, and Asuka nodded, changing her opinion, "You don't have to be the evil dragon, if you don't want to…"

Gray sat in the background, scowling, with his arms crossed over his chest, staring daggers at Lyon as he sorted makeup for Juvia. Hater. He as obviously jealous of Lyon's mad skills.

The actual game wasn't really a game, per se. It mostly involved smashing up the ice castle, saying a lot of cliché lines that were blatantly stolen from somewhere (that Gray alternately bungled or deadpanned), lots of Gray-samas from the princess, lots of smashed up imps and demons courtesy of the bastard prince and plenty of yelling. So, noisy destruction… of course. This child was a Fairy already at the tender age of five.

It ended when Gray and Lyon were too exhausted from battling each other to move. Both of them flopped on their backs on the muddy and icy ground, groaning and sore. Heads of imps and broken lances lay scattered around, making it look like a battle of grand proportions had been scaled at the gates of the guild. A few mages had become casualties while trying to get through into the building, probably with patches of frost bite and ice burns where the cross fire hit them.

In the end, the princess had to climb down from the mutilated and leaning tower herself. She slid down carefully, Gray having considerately made her a stair case with a hand rail. She came out looking amused, holding Asuka's hand, and remarked, "Gray-sama and Lyon are very dirty now. You should probably get clean before coming inside."

Lyon gasped in shock at the cold water that hosed him down, clothing and all. Gray, who had lost half his clothing in the battle, was in slightly better shape, but also gasped. The two sat, sopping wet but sparkling clean, dumbfounded as the girls packed up the props and left them sitting there.

"Fairies and dragon, hmmm?" Lyon asked his brother. "Not a bad game."

"Well, it's not exactly accurate, I guess, when there are no dragons."

"I suppose a dark magician suffices in place of a dragon."

"We don't think of you like that, you know." Gray was looking at the sky while getting to his feet and wringing out his pant legs one by one. He offered a hand to Lyon and hauled him up easily. "Fairy Tail doesn't think like that, about all the bad things done in the past."

"What about bad things done in the future?" Lyon leered, unable to resist teasing him.

Gray gave him an unamused look, "Lyon, don't play around, okay? I'm serious. Think about what you're doing for once. With the right head."

Lyon raised his hands in surrender, unable to say anything one way or the other for the first time in his life.


	7. Chapter Six

 

 Chapter Six

 

Gray wasn't sure exactly what to think when he stumbled upon what could only be described as one of the most scarring experiences in life. Lyon's falsetto voice and high pitched giggle were going to echo in his brain for eternity. If that wasn't traumatizing enough,  _what_  they were reading was inexpressible in words to how disturbing it was. There just were no words.

" _He her gave her the flicker of an arrogant smile. 'But of course they are,' he said, with a careless shrug. 'I excite the attention of women wherever I go—it's one of my many gifts.'_ "

He winced, fearing the worst. His suspicions were confirmed when he spotted a familiar book cover in Meredy's hands. He couldn't remember exactly where he'd seen it before but somehow looking at it made him cringe. Then it hit him, and he swallowed anxiously.

"Oh, hi Gray," Meredy said, coolly. May the grudge continue then. Gray was so glad Juvia wasn't all petty and shit like that. Lyon didn't even bother to look up as he read off another line, entirely serious and not embarrassed in the slightest, " _Love for the woman before him oozed out of every pore and atom of his being in time with his heartbeat._ Why do women enjoy these?"

"You need to put those back where ever you found them."

"I don't know where I found them…" Meredy said, looking genuinely puzzled. "They just kind of… appeared?"

"Why?" Lyon asked, thumbing through a page.

"Because those are Erza's! She's going to kill you!"

"No she's not; I'm her little sister. I'll just explain sisters share." Meredy replied flippantly, "Besides, she's still on a mission, remember? We're just borrowing them."

"Oh ho, is that who owns these… I must admit…"

"STOP! Just… stop…" Gray couldn't process whatever was going to come out of Lyon's depraved mouth. "I've already see her naked; I don't need to know what's in those books."

Lyon paused in flipping through the pages, looking interested, his beady black eyes regarding Gray keenly, "Really now? You have seen the great Titania naked. What cruel twist of fate is this that you are honored so?"

"I've seen her naked," Meredy shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. She was totally missing and/or ignoring Lyon being nasty. "And so has Jellal."

Gray did not want to remember the closet incident either.

"Jellal! What would Jellal say if he caught you snooping through Erza's stuff?" Gray was grasping at straws now.

"He'd have to catch me first, now wouldn't he? I have a forty-nine point three percent success rate at not getting caught by Jellal doing something wrong."

Lyon's face lost a little color and he stumbled on the sentence he was reading under his breath, Gray noted with satisfaction. He couldn't help smirking a little when he was certain Meredy wasn't looking. That's right, bastard, think about what you're doing here for a minute.

"That is not a very good success rate, Snoopy," Lyon choked out. Don't think Gray didn't catch the cute little nickname either.

"Well, I live with the guy practically all the time. It's pretty hard to sneak things by him. It's almost fifty-fifty, so I'd say it's actually pretty good. Sometimes, at night, when I get this urge I can't fight, I have to be really quiet, but it's really hard because it's so good and I want to make some noise at how good it is because everything is so pent up. And then I stick my fingers in, the anticipation of the pleasure is real, but it's tricky because Jellal's there, you know? Plus, you have to go slow or there's nothing to savor…"

"Stop, dammit, you two are sick."

Meredy stared at him in confusion then blinked a few times, "By eating cookies? Jellal is unbelievably strict about junk food and sugar. He says it rots the body."

Lyon smirked knowingly, following Gray's mind into the gutter, "My, Gray has quite the dirty little mind. She was only speaking of some  _cookies_ , brother."

"Go to Hell, Mr. Blue Balls," Gray snapped, flushing and putting his face in his hands. This… this was why he liked hanging out with Natsu, and why Natsu was his best bro pal. They could rough house and punch each other and insult each other and eat things and do all that great stuff without…  _this_. Because Natsu didn't fucking get it. How his hormones hadn't kicked him in the nutsack yet was beyond anyone's guess, must be a Dragon Slayer thing delaying puberty or something, but he was blissfully oblivious. And Gray wasn't… hadn't been… for a while.

"Now, now, no need to take your frustrations out of me and be crude."

Gray sighed then tried to cover his ears at Lyon continued reading another passage from the novel, " _… and then he threw her down, dominate like a lone wolf, and stared at her face with burning, golden eyes full of lust…"_

"Okay, enough, freezerburn," Gray winced, "we get the idea. Let's ask Levy where they go. Maybe Erza borrowed them from the library…" He never really set foot in the small room that was Fairy Tail's library. All of the important and valuable scrolls and books were obviously not kept there for good reason with that crazy pyromaniac dunce on the loose. The rest of the books were just mundane things members of Fairy Tail had collected and forgotten or bought and donated when they finished. It was kind of like a common of abandoned books that no one could bear to throw away. It also happened to be where the resident smartypants of the guild liked to hang out and do research where it was quiet, since the room also happened to be abandoned. Fairy Tail wasn't the most literate of guilds. Gray wasn't even sure Natsu could read beyond a first grade level and Gajeel couldn't be that much further along. Cana could only make out alcohol labels at this point, was his bet, given how important a life skill that was for her.

As they neared the library, his ears picked up on an unexpected voice. Licking his lips, suddenly a little anxious, he slowed down making Meredy plow into the back of him because she was reading and walking. She grunted a little but didn't bother to complain, since, apparently, that stupid book was more interesting than anything else at the moment.

Gray was so dead.

When Jellal came back, he was going to die in the most horrible ways possible, unless he could somehow take refuge behind Erza or Master Makarov. It was a sad, cruel day the moment when he viewed Erza as his savior  _from_  punishment. He never should've taken that stupid job request.

"Sorry," he muttered, still distracted. She waved him off and turned the page. Lyon was sauntering behind her looking just as interested in his book. His interest was more of the predatory variety though rather than mere curiosity.

"Juvia  _lost_  them. Erza lent them to her and she set them down but she forgot where because when she went back to fetch them they were gone and Erza will be back from her mission soon and what if she wants to read them? What will Juvia do?"

"It's okay, Juvia. I'm sure they're not lost. It's not like the members here spend a lot of time reading books, so they're probably just sitting somewhere in the guild. Maybe Mira moved them?" Levy replied soothingly.

Gray's eyes flicked around the small room. Levy was at the lone desk, her red glasses perched on the end of her pert nose and a quill clutched between her fingers, evidently in the middle of work. Juvia was wringing her hands anxiously and pacing a few steps; she hadn't noticed them yet. Gajeel was sprawled out on the worn, tiny loveseat that most people used for sitting. His head was thrown back with a magazine over it to block out the light and judging by the deafening buzzing sound, he was sleeping. Gray didn't even know how the girls could hear each other over that. It sounded like someone was throwing frozen human flesh through a wood chipper or something.

Gray felt vindicated. At least he wasn't the only one who had it bad. At least he wasn't hanging around some stupid old library with a pin-up of… oh shit. Shit, shit, shit. Out of all the issues of Sorcerer Weekly, why'd it have to be  _that_  one? He thought he'd destroyed all the copies in the guild ages ago! Natsu had tried to burn Lucy's copy and she banished him from her apartment for a week, so Gray had snuck in later and taken care of it, then blamed it on Natsu, of course.

No one needed to see that!

Lyon poked his spiky head around the corner, attracted by the sound of Juvia's voice, the shark, and Gray did the first thing he could think of. He tackled Gajeel. He tackled a fucking sleeping dragon. What the hell was he thinking? Oh right, he was thinking he'd never get to live it down if Lyon saw him in drag as a pin up model. Even if it was punishment and even if Gajeel and Natsu were also on the cover and even if it wasn't damn fucking funny at all.

Predictably, all hell broke loose.

Gray snatched the magazine, vaulted off Gajeel's stomach and high tailed it behind the loveseat. Gajeel woke up roaring and throwing iron everywhere. Levy shrieked and dove under the desk. Lyon grabbed Meredy, who was obliviously still reading that obnoxious book, and dragged her bodily into the hall.

Juvia stood frozen, probably trying to process what just happened. Maybe if she hadn't been fretting about the lost books or if she wasn't oogling Gray's boxers, because he happened to lose his pants just before his suicide mission, she might have seen the blow coming and turned to water.

Instead, Gray found himself thoughtlessly throwing himself in front of her. Again. The feel to her rump may or may not have been accidental this time. The iron poles slammed into his side with a painful crunch and he lost his footing. Both he and Juvia tumbled over into the bookcases. Fortunately, they were bolted to the floor for just such an accidental occasion, as most furniture in the guild was, but all that meant was Gray's spine slammed into the shelves as he tried to protect Juvia from hitting anything. He was satisfied with his success in that department but it really felt like his spine was bisected – no trisected. Yeah, there had to be at least three separate pieces of his spine where the shelves had hit him.

"Gray-sama saved Juvia!" she shrieked excitedly in his ear. He winced and clutched it in pain as the noise drilled into his brain. How did girls hit those high notes? It was like she was channeling her inner howler monkey or something.

Carefully, he pushed himself up off the bookcase, and gently nudged her off his lap onto the floor. She seemed dazed but unhurt, making him sigh in relief.

"I think you broke Juvia, Gray," Meredy remarked, looking down at her friend with bemusement. It was true. It seemed like what happened finally seeped into her brain and fried it.

"Juvia, are you okay?" Gray asked in concern, proud he didn't stutter. He even managed a little bit of loft to his tone, like maybe he didn't fully care… maybe he cared just a little. A tiny bit. Like he'd thrown himself in front of a train for her or tackle a monster barehanded and it was nothing because it was her, and he'd do anything to keep her safe. Okay, there wasn't anything in his tone to suggest he didn't care. He sounded worried. He sounded whipped. He could hear the heckling from Gajeel now…

"Gray-sama saved Juvia… like Alonzo in the book!" Juvia squealed in glee, springing back to life and grabbing his hand between hers excitedly and shaking it before bolting to her feet to twirl in a circle. He jerked back in surprise but she didn't seem to notice as she added loudly, "Gray-sama loves Juvia!"

"Oh, you're right! It was  _just like_  when Alonzo saves Lydia!" Levy also squealed, suddenly excited, getting a chance to talk shop about a book for the first time in Fairy Tail history with someone other than Lucy or Freed. "That was one of the most exciting scenes in the book!"

Meredy frantically flipped through the book, "What? When does Alonzo get with Lydia? I thought Lydia was with that lumberjack guy… I'm so confused."

Gajeel grunted, clearly not amused by their talk, and yawned like he woke up trashing the place daily. Gray took a look around and noticed that none of the books were damaged or out of place. Runes glowed softly, activated, and Levy was too excited to turn them off. Well, maybe he did trash the place daily, if Levy felt the need to put runes around the entire library that were strong enough to take that sort of beating. Gray kind of wished someone had rune-d his back and chest because they fucking hurt. It would figure Wendy was out on a job too. He was getting way too damn soft because she always healed him up after a beating.

"Stripper… Iceberg…" Gajeel grunted again, eyeing them blurrily. His gaze wandered to the small circle of girls, and he grunted, "What the 'ell happened?"

"Gray decided to take up gymnastics."

Gajeel grunted again, turning his eyes towards Gray accusingly. Gray was not up for this. Fortunately, neither was Gajeel. He blinked then flopped back down on the loveseat, his long legs and arms flopping over every which way and his head resting against the arm.

"This is quite fascinating; when did this happen?"

Fucking hell. When did Lyon get ahold of that?

Gajeel looked up and flushed slightly his nose curled up in disgust, canines visible. Gray was beyond flushing; he was so mortified he was sure he was going to die. And Juvia would have to mourn his grave or something.

"Oi, give it back. That's my sleepin' mask."

"Seems rather flimsy," Lyon remarked, graciously handing the magazine back without a crass remark. How come the bastard was being so respectful now? And to Gajeel of all people! "Surely you can find better."

"Shrimp won't let me touch 'er books."

"That's right, Gajeel Redfox, I won't. You tried to use some of them to light a fire, remember?"

"It was cold."

"And the time you thought it might be good as toilet paper?"

"I was out."

"And that other time you were using them for… I don't even know what you were doing that time!"

Gajeel mumbled something. Despite the fact that the short script mage was chewing him out, he had a happy smirk on his face. Levy sighed with exasperation, a similar smile on her lips. Gray felt a gag coming on at the rainbow fluff vomit that was crawling up his throat. Puh-leeze, they were worse than Meredy and Lyon.

The girls then proceeded to ignore them, talking in low tones about the books. Idly, Lyon flipped the one he'd retained from hand to hand.

"What a bunch of drivel," he declared carelessly. He tossed it to Gajeel, who snagged it out of the air with one hand. Gajeel opened it, read for a few moments before slamming it shut and turning red. He let out a crude string of swear words telling the whole world about how he felt reading that so-called drivel.

"…velvet coated steel?" Gajeel choked in outrage. He looked like he wanted to say more but his apocalyptic fit was preventing the words from exiting his mouth. Gray was mildly concerned he might pass out from lack of blood and oxygen, but only mildly. After all, the dickhead had given Gray several concussions in the usual bar fights. He could probably take some damage and be okay.

Violently, he threw the book back at Lyon. The ice mage had been leaning against the doorframe, causally watching the girls with a pukey look on his face, the one Gray only noticed when he was spaced out thinking soppy thoughts. Gray liked his asshole smirked ten thousand times better. When Lyon got all gushy like that it was creepy. He was probably being a total perv.

The poor book didn't stand a chance.

It exploded into a million ice fragments, victim of Lyon's startled reflexes.

The entire room was dead silent.

"Shit, that was  _Erza's_  book, man," Gray whistled, long and low.

"Erza is going to  _kill_  Juvia!" Juvia wailed in horror. She sidled over, clutching Gray's arm desperately, like he was somehow supposed to save her from Erza's wrath. He awkwardly patted her hand but didn't dislodge her like he normally would have.

Meredy shrugged, still reading the damn book, "She's going to kill someone anyway. Considering the number of witnesses, I'm putting bets on Lyon and Gajeel."

The two men looked at each other, glaring vicious daggers, on the edge of immense violence. Gray felt a flush of victory. For once – praise all things good and holy – for once Gray was not going to be on the other end of Erza's wrath. For once, he was going to get the satisfaction of watching someone else get pounded into a mass of trembling jelly. And that someone was Lyon. It could not possibly get any better than that. Gajeel was just some lame ass icing on top.

Lyon's face was slightly pale, "There is a simple solution to this. Surely, all that needs to be done is buying a replacement copy from the bookstore…"

Levy looked at him with pity in her big, brown eyes and winced, "Uhh, that copy has been out of print for a while. I – uh – I'm the one that bought it…" Her entire face turned bright red admitting she had a hand in funneling Erza softcore porn and she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear nervously. Biting her bottom lip, she looked down at the floor, "I found it by accident and bought it as a birthday present… for Erza. Because I know she likes those kind of books, and I thought she'd like it… I mean, it was out of print and limited edition, so it was too rare to pass up! I couldn't resist, and I can't just give someone a book without reading it first. What kind of friend does that? What if it was a terrible book? Anyway… you can't just go to the bookstore and buy another one…"

Gajeel was staring like he'd never seen her before. The poor bastard's brain was probably broke thinking about his sweet, innocent little crush reading those kinds of books, Gray snickered. Not only reading them but buying them and sharing them too… If he thought about it, which he did for a moment, he realized Juvia had been the one borrowing those books… which meant Juvia was also reading them. Not that Gray thought she was a sweet innocent or anything… she'd mentioned having a boyfriend before… but it did explain where she kept getting all her weird fantasies.

Huh.

Her books might have to have an unfortunate accident sometime in the future. How  _sad_.

Gray didn't subscribe to popular bullshit about how a girl should act.

"Juvia is dead!" Juvia shouted again, looking upset, bringing his attention to her with another painful squeeze. Frustrated tears were collecting in her eyes, making his ire at Lyon and Gajeel skyrocket. Those stupid morons, making Juvia cry… wait. Wait. He was berating others guys for making her cry? Well, it wasn't  _him_  this time after all. He wanted to deck both of them but at that moment Juvia let go to round on Gajeel for him. "Erza trusted Juvia with her precious books and it is broken. And it's all Gajeel's fault!"

The dragon slayer looked pole axed at her furious finger of blame pointed dead center at his chest. Gray was practically pissing himself with laughter at this point at the dragon slayer's stupefied look. It could not possibly get any better than this. Not that he had anything against the metalhead, mostly, but Juvia usually gave the guy a free pass for all kinds of shit. Watching her round on him was actually kind of hot.

Abruptly, Gray stopped laughing and started choking, squirming a little.

He did  _not_  just think that.

Except she was totally smokin' hot. Her dark blue eyes all fired up with righteous fury and her lush lips puckered up to spit out each word. One hand was fixed on her generous hip while the other was pointing fearlessly at the big man who could probably crush her physically without a second thought. She looked, at that moment, like she was ready to take on the world, consequences be damned.

Lyon looked over and frowned. Gray did not like the way his eyes lingered though because he was obviously also gauging Juvia's hotness and did this guy ever give it a rest? She wasn't interested in him, so he should just lay off.

"Juvia, I will do my best to rectify this situation. Please, stop berating the dumb brute." Gajeel growled at the insult but sat sulkily on the couch, afraid to move lest the wrath of Juvia fall harder on his head. She still was striking the pose, ready to let him have it if he made the wrong move. "Clearly, the man merely took offense to the poor prose used to describe a penis. You can hardly blame him. It is rather atrocious."

All the girls stared at him, identical flushes plunging down their necks into their shirts. Levy actually squeaked and hid her face in her hands. Gray fought down a blush himself at how boldly Lyon just threw that out there. That was just too much. And he never wanted to hear the p-word from his brother's lips ever again.

"What? The least the author could do is write the anatomically correct terminology. It is impossible for wombs to be reached in that manner, and no man is a plant, therefore, the term 'seed' is misused."

Lyon sounded like he had some experience with this.

Levy nodded in agreement and peeked out through her fingers, "You're right. Semen or sperm is more accurate." Meredy mumbled that those didn't sound sexy in the slightest but Levy ignored her, "And the cervix is a natural barrier to protect the uterus from penetration. But it's pretty abnormal for the cervix to be hit during sexual intercourse, unless the penis is unusually large… The average size is around six inches. Besides, girth is much more important than length."

At which point Gajeel was the one choking. Or maybe he was crying. Gray definitely felt for the man, trying to keep still and not look down. The three guys shared a long look of understanding. Levy needed to be shut up. No one wanted to know their penis was smaller than average… or average… or why did she even know that stupid, obscure fact anyway?

Whenever Levy slipped into brainiac fact-mode, she could say some of the worst things. Like that time she discussed how sausages were actually made or that other time she informed them about the bacteria that lived and ate away their skin or that other time she described the bedbug mating cycle or when she discovered some disgusting fish that swam up into people's bodies or that other… anyway, once she started up on some weird, random fact collection, she generally traumatized the surrounding populace with things they never wanted to know and then could never forget.

Lyon nodded in complete agreement, his face serious. He looked ready to have a down and dirty discussion about the birds and the bees right smack in the middle of the room in front of Juvia, Meredy and the rest. Okay, so his look wasn't in complete understanding. His look was how can I be the biggest troll on Earthland?

"And…"

"Okay, asshat, enough. Levy, can you replace the book or not? I'd hate for Erza to be mad at Juvia because it wasn't her fault these two losers can't read like normal people," Gray cut in and Juvia threw him a dazzled look that he was taking her side. Really, he just wanted Lyon to shut the hell up. And mentioning Juvia's predicament seemed like the best way to do it. It had nothing to do with taking her side… nothing… nothing at all. Uncomfortable at the stars in her eyes, he looked away and shoved his hands in his… shit! He lost his pants again. Oh right, never mind, he lost them a while ago and never put them back on.

And… his boxers…

Damn, it was way too hot in here!

But it explained Juvia's starry look. Maybe he wasn't too average, considering.

"Well…" Levy considered, neatly manicured finger pressed against her lip, head tilted slightly in thought. "Maybe second-hand book stores might have it. Or, you know, the, uh, adult stores. I guess if we split up into pairs and checked all of them, maybe we could find a copy. Or order one."

"Juvia will go with Gray-sama!"

"Gray, please tell me you don't go out in public like that," Lyon sniffed condescendingly and Gajeel rolled his red eyes roughly, "Put on some boxers, man. Yer burnin' my eyes with yer junk."

"I'll check with my contacts," Levy remarked, focused on the task rather than Gray's lack of clothing. He could appreciate that about her right now. If one more person stared at his crotch, he might have some inferiority issues or something. It was like they had rulers for eyes. He grabbed the nearest magazine and used it to cover himself, belatedly realizing it was the dreaded Sorcerer Weekly that had started this whole mess in the first place.

"Your pants, Gray," Meredy remarked cheerfully holding out his pants pinched between her fingers like they had cooties. He noticed that she wasn't exactly averting her eyes as she handed them to him. Uggh, and uggh. And he couldn't even blame anyone else. It was totally his fault he couldn't keep his clothing on to save his life in the company of guests.

"Hmm, well, I suppose partners are the best idea. Perhaps, since Meredy and I do not know Magnolia well, it would be best for Meredy to go with you." Lyon cast a dark look at Gajeel, not really liking his suggestion. Gray half hoped they beat each other senseless but then Juvia wouldn't get the book and there'd still be a big problem.

Levy nodded, eyeing the pink haired woman speculatively, "I suppose that makes sense. But isn't Meredy supposed to be staying in the guild?"

"I can wear my cloak, I guess," Meredy didn't sound too happy about that. Gray noticed she didn't bother to wear it within the guild, so he guessed it was probably uncomfortable. "With the hood up."

"Then Meredy and I shall go. It won't matter if she is seen with me, for I won't be recognized as easily as a Fairy Tail member. I would hate for Fairy Tail to get into trouble with the local authority," Lyon said gallantly. Gray stifled a cynical snort. And it had nothing to do with being with Meredy at all. He was so fucking transparent. Of course people were still going to recognize him; he'd fought in the Games too after all. If anything, she was probably safer with a member of Fairy Tail. Magnolia was actually surprisingly protective of their crazyass guild, having seen most of the members grow up in their town, and the citizens were likely to turn a blind eye to most any of the hijinks the mages got up to. They moved their whole damn town for the Gildarts Shift after all.

Gajeel had taken the opportunity to inch closer to Levy, towering over her protectively, hands folded across his chest. He wouldn't have gone with Lyon anyway.

Levy gave his arm an absentminded pat, like he was a big, angry dog guarding her, and pulled out several maps from the desk drawer. Each one was neatly labeled in beautiful cursive writing. She flicked her pen a few times, highlight each map, before handing them out.

"These are all the bookstores in Magnolia. Just check out the ones that are highlighted in your section of the map. With any luck, we can replace Erza's book," the blunette remarked cheerfully, surprisingly organized. Gray did not want to know why she mapped out every single bookstore in Magnolia. It was amazing she still had a place to sleep in her dorm room.

"Come on, Gray-sama!"

"This isn't a date, Juvia," he sputtered as she latched onto his arm, her breasts pressing against him. At least he'd gotten his pants back on. She pouted and dragged him out of the room anyway. Stumbling along, he tried not to trip over his feet or her.

Juvia let go in the hallway, shyly glancing at the ground with her hands behind her back, "Thank you, Gray-sama, for helping Juvia. She really appreciates it."

He rubbed the back of his head bashfully, "It's nothing."

"And even though Gray-sama said it is not a date, Juvia will enjoy it anyway, because it will be private time between Gray-sama and Juvia!"

"Uggh, don't say it like that," he protested weakly, glancing away in embarrassment and covering his face to hide the pink. It wasn't exactly a date… it was sort of like a date but not really. They were going to hang out together, alone, but this was nothing new, right? They'd done this countless times before when Lucy or Natsu or Erza ditched them during some outing. There was absolutely no reason to be nervous.

Uggh, why was he so sweaty? Ice mages didn't sweat!

Suddenly her stomach gave a long, drawn out noise like it was being sucked into a black hole or whatever. She gave him a mortified look, which was incredibly cute, and he sighed a little. Well, he was a little hungry…

"Juvia, we need to have lunch before we go running around town, okay? There's no reason to run around starving."

"But…"

"Don't worry about it. We'll have time to go to the bookstores, I promise," he reassured her, her face breaking into a trusting smile. He had no fucking idea if it was true or not but the look of relief on her face made  _him_  feel better. "Now, where would you like to eat?"

It was totally a date.


	8. Chapter Seven

 

Chapter Seven

 

"Uhh, this is so hot and itchy," Meredy whined, tugging at the edge of her hood.

"You could take it off."

"I can't. It's one of Jellal's rules for going out in public." There was definitely a moping in her tone.

"But it blocks your pretty face," Lyon fake pouted. She had to crane her head around to catch his mocking expression, which he found hilarious. She looked like some kind of disgruntled owl. She rolled her eyes in exasperation, "That's kind of the point, you know. So people don't recognize me."

"You've been on the run for most of your life," Lyon pointed out pragmatically, unbothered by her criminal status or her need to hide. "If the Council was going to catch you, do you really believe it would be here and now? Just take off the stupid hood if it bothers you that much."

"It's that kind of arrogance that will get us caught," Meredy intoned in a deep, serious voice. "We have these uniforms for a reason. You will wear it, for your safety and mine. I do not careif it offends your sense of fashion."

Ah.

"Prickles your sense of fashion, huh? And here I thought dark cloaks and hoods were all the rage in dark-hunter guilds."

"Oh shut up," Meredy mumbled, ducking her head. With one deft motion, he grabbed the hood and pulled it down. She yelped and fumbled, yelling about blowing her cover. Lyon felt his eye twitch a bit. Didn't she realize that her running around in a hood and cloak then screaming about blowing cover was way worse than just walking around naturally? While she was a very pretty young lady that turned heads, she didn't exactly scream hardened criminal or have a tattoo on her face marking her the way Jellal did.

"Then why don't we go find something that suits you better?"

"You're strange. What kind of guy wants to go shopping with a girl?"

He shrugged carelessly. He wasn't about to admit how many times he was dragged out by Sherry or Shelia or Sherry and Shelia to go shopping over the years. He enjoyed seeing them happy, and carrying a bunch of boxes and sacrificing part of a day wasn't too steep a price to watch his minions frolic around in ridiculous clothing. And they always paid him homage afterwards. Plus, he always needed more clothing of his own, when he used to strip all the time. And now buying clothing had become a habit. What, he liked to look nice.

Actually, he frowned with realization that might have been fueling the stalker problem. Both the accompaniment and the stripping of the clothing. And, of course, the being insanely handsome bit too.

"We could go to adult stores instead. I am certain that there is lingerie that would look lovely—mmph!"

"Does anything embarrass you!" she hissed looked around with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. She wasn't nearly as put out as she was pretending. She gave him a sassy smirk and huffed, "Honestly!"

"Does anything embarrass you?" he asked after prying her hand off his mouth. She wiped her hand off on his shirt earning a dirty look. Even if it was his own saliva, he didn't really want it wiped on his shirt.

"Well… not a lot. I mean, it can't get any worse than knowing about what Jellal feels about Erza, and then being face to face with Erza later on. It can't get much worse than that, right? And don't get me started on the whole indirect kiss thing… that was like a narrow miss right there. But they haven't really made it to second base yet let alone third… so, uh, yeah. Not a lot embarrasses me."

Uggh, he did not need to know that. And uggh, did she really get all that through her bond with Jellal? She literally knew where and what he was doing all the time… all the time. And with Titania… did looking at her turn- … yeah, no. Just, no. Lyon took it all back. That was the worst power in the world. It was amazing she didn't seclude herself and cut off all contact with all human beings like that harpy of a woman who healed the Fairy Tail members.

"If you think we have time, I wouldn't mind doing some shopping. Just so I have something to wear around the guild… for the week. So I don't look so suspicious and all."

Lame excuse, but he would generously let it slide.

Four clothing stores later, he was beginning to wonder if they shouldn't actually be plotting their route so that it at least came near the bookstores on the map. After all, they were on a mission to find Erza's book still. So far they'd only visited one store and the clerk had asked them a very personal question about their love life when they asked about it.

Lyon did not need to role play, and he had informed the clerk of such in a haughty tone before sweeping out the door, dragging Meredy behind him. The nerve of the woman! It seemed to occur to Meredy after they exited the store what the woman had meant, and she spent the next five minutes bright pink despite the fact that she claimed she didn't easily embarrass and rubbing her wrist. If Lyon wasn't so upset he'd have teased her about it. He sincerely hoped that Gray and Gajeel were having a similar sort of time asking for such nonsense with the women in tow. In fact, he leered a little when he considered Gray asking for such a book with Juvia standing next to him, then he worried for Juvia's safety. Gray would not be gentle if he had to drag her unconscious body around town because she passed out at the word role-play.

"What do you think of this one?"

He pulled his attention away from his internal plotting and his dark eyes widened slightly. If his eyes were widening, other parts of him were tightening in approval.

Her fashion sense was pretty hit or miss, he'd discovered. There had been several outfits she'd chosen that were either ugly, gaudy, neon colors or had disturbingly cute animals across the chest. He did not really like the idea of cute baby bunnies on her chest nor visual fatigue from the outfit that imitated a tennis ball. But this time she really hit the nail on the head. The dress hugged in all the right places; it just snug enough to show off her curves but not so tight that there nothing was left to the imagination. Lyon approved because he had quite the imagination, and he reserved the right to exercise it. The hem brushed mid-thigh, flirty and pleated, with some lace embellishment, but just a little. Enough to tie the outfit together. Matching lace covered the top, which was, to Lyon's pleasure, held up by two thin straps that he noted criss-crossed across her open back when she twirled. There wasn't anything dirty about the dress though; it was just a cute summer dress that happened to be utterly perfect, like it was made for the woman wearing it. It was a pastel mint green and white with tiny pink flowers that match her hair. Green was about to become his favorite color.

"Is… is it okay? Lyon… Earthland to Lyon… are you okay? Hey!"

"Y-yes?"

"What do you think? Stop spacing out!"

The clerk who had been patiently helping her gave him a wink. Why that little…

He wet his lips and swallowed, hard.

"I think…" he paused to get his thoughts together then continued, "I think that one is a keeper. It really suits you. Much better than a cloak and hood."

Tickled by the compliment, she swished back towards the changing room. Lyon couldn't tear his eyes away from the way the dress accented her sashaying hips. He let his head thunk against the wall behind him, ignoring the knowing look from the retail clerk. It felt so grounding he did it half a dozen more times until she came back out of the dressing room to look at him oddly.

The only thing he noticed was that she hadn't changed back. She was still wearing the dress.

Clucking his tongue, he pointed out the sole flaw in her outfit, "Your boots." True, she had ditched the stockings, which was nice, but the brown leather boots didn't quite fit the look she was rocking. Oh, they were color coordinated enough, and if they were new, they'd probably be fine. But these boots were well-loved and worn, filthy and used. Those were shit-kicking boots, and totally unnecessary at the moment.

"Excuse me, miss," he beckoned over the clerk, deciding that the woman would probably have the answer already mapped out in her head. She gave him a pleased look and walked over with a smart yes, sir? "We will take the dress, but I was wondering if your store also carried shoes?"

In which, Meredy was decked out in some very fashionable and revealing greek style sandals laced up in a way that was reminiscent of the straps across her back. The tiny white wings on the ankles were cute, according to Meredy, who was delighted by them for some reason. Lyon realized he might have a tiny fetish for ankles at that point, but just a tiny one.

Lyon brushed off her protests and paid for the outfit and the sandals, hardly glancing at the price tag. It couldn't possibly hold a candle to his own clothing bills after all. Besides, he couldn't imagine that she had a lot of spare money, and he told her so. She stuck her tongue out at him but stopped didn't say anything more about it after that. So he had guessed right. He also slipped the clerk a very, very generous tip for her services.

They hit several more stores, Lyon giving in and buying himself some clothing as well plus a new mixer for Mira to replace the broken one, before they stopped for some snacks.

"You like those Faeries very much, don't you?" Lyon asked curiously.

The woman gave a happy shrug, pausing her snacking, "Well, yeah. Fairy Tail is the only light guild Jellal allows us to associate with. So, they're really my only friends outside of my own guild. It's not like I can just waltz up to people in dark guilds and chat with them."

He frowned at that. Did they really have no other allies than Fairy Tail? Considering the services they rendered to the country, that seemed a little wrong. Surely they were in contact with other guilds? Guilds that weren't afraid to bend the rules a little to aid fellow mages.

"You could come to Lamia Scale."

"Oh really? And how does you guildmaster view criminals trespassing on guild property?" Meredy laughed a little but Lyon could hear the strain in it. "I'd imagine not well."

"When I become guildmaster, you will have a standing invitation," Lyon replied staunchly, and he meant it.

"Thanks… I think. When will that be?"

When would that be? Well, Lyon had no idea, really.

When he originally joined Lamia Scale, following Yuka and Toby back to their original guild and listening to Gray's advice, he intended it to be temporary. After all, what could a guild of lowly mages possibly offer him? Humbly, he took the punishment for all four of them, working his way up from the bottom of the guild as the lowliest worm. It was humiliating and cruel, but he saw no other way to achieve his new goal in life.

He intended to stay long enough to get into the good graces of the Council and build up his funds and his power and his minion legion. That only took two years. Lyon liked to keep a tight schedule, and two years seemed like a reasonable amount of time, considering the S-class missions he took and the devotion of his minions.

But then the Tenrou Island incident happened, and Lyon realized he'd become attached to Lamia Scale. He could never just… leave. These were feelings he accepted without any fuss because it seemed pointless to rebel against them. Certainly, it would take longer, but he would still become guildmaster someday. He was willing to wait and step up into his position of power when the time was right. Besides, at that point, he would have Jura on his side, and it never hurt to have one of the Wizard Saints at your beck and call.

Sabertooth and Fairy Tail would be nothing in comparison to the guild he planned to raise.

"When it is meant to be," he remarked, still a little lost in thought. Who would have ever guessed how soft he'd become after Galuna Island? Those Fairy assholes – namely Gray – really did a number on him.

"You're not like Ul said," Meredy finally replied, looking thoughtful herself. Briefly he wondered what Ultear had said about him, when he'd never even met her before, but dismissed the thought from his mind. "I was kind of expecting an egotistical, sadistic jerk who was a pain in the neck. Plus, I really thought you'd harass Juvia more, but she told me you've actually been giving her really good advice. And you haven't been being too mean to Gray… you're really a nice guy!"

A…nice… guy…

Way to throw out a compliment there. Of course Lyon was a nice guy! When he wanted to be anyway. She really needed to work on her compliments; they fell short of their intended goal by miles. Still, he couldn't resist the happy smile that worked its way onto his lips. It hadn't taken too long to win her over from their first rather rough conversation where he was just a guy rather than a nice guy. Why, in a few more days, who knew what kind of upgrade he'd get. Maybe a fantastic guy or a wonderful guy or a boyfriend guy… he mentally slapped himself at the last one.

Behaved, he hissed at his lovesick brain. He'd already been toeing the invisible line all day by escorting her around and paying for her clothing. He didn't need to push it any further.

"Why thank you. You are not quite what I expected either," he teased stepping away from her. "You're much taller and better looking than your mannerisms suggest. What, with the immature giggles, you should look years younger."

She swatted him then as he laughed and ducked. Catching her hand, he playfully gave her knuckles a grazing kiss, which stopped her dead in her tracks.

"You are very beautiful and mature, Meredy. I was just teasing you."

"Ah… um…" she snatched her hand back.

"So you can be quiet. Gray said it was an impossibility," Lyon smiled slightly to show her he didn't mean it to be a barb.

"Any-anyway! I wonder how everyone else is doing. Thanks for partnering up with me so Levy could be with Gajeel!"

Lyon was more than glad he didn't have to deal with the hairy, grumpy dragon slayer. It wouldn't be that much fun. The man had the sense of humor of a stone and probably the intelligence of one as well. There would definitely be no witty banter between Lyon and Gajeel or knuckle kisses, unless you counted fists to teeth. And then ice and metal would be involved, and that would not end well. But Lyon was confident that he could whip the shit out of the other man if it came down to it, dragon magic or no.

"Well, I doubt much will happen," Lyon remarked. While Meredy viewed the whole thing as cute, Lyon wondered what was wrong with the other man. Was he oblivious, ignorant or chicken shit?

"Oh, it won't be that big of a problem after this afternoon," Meredy giggled evilly, stuffing the remainder of her food in her cheek.

It hit Lyon then.

"You didn't."

"I did."

"That's evil." He couldn't help smirking a little.

"It's for their own good!" she protested loudly.

"I thought you wouldn't do that without permission," Lyon mused. "Or is that a special exception for Gray? It seems wrong to prey on the innocent."

Meredy shrugged a little, looking uncomfortable at his insinuations, "Levy knows. She's the one that asked me to do it. If it goes well, Gajeel should be thanking me."

Lyon pointed out the flaw in her plan, serious, "And if it doesn't go well?"

She paused, considering the consequences. She was just like the Faeries; act first and think later.

"It should be fine. I'd feel terrible if it wasn't."

He hoped her optimism was justified. Not that he wasn't pretty much doing the same thing with Gray and Juvia, pulling some underhanded tricks to get them together. He couldn't judge her too harshly; she was just trying to help. His motives weren't quite so innocent and naïve, so he definitely couldn't judge. She didn't have a dog in the fight, except silly notions of love.

Before he knew what was happening, Meredy grabbed his hands and spun until she crashed into him. Both their arms were wrapped together and around them, effectively caging her against him. The fabric of her new dress was riding up, just a little, and he was practically resting his chin on the top of her head. She laughed, giddy and dizzy, leaning against him trustingly. She tilted her head backwards, peering up at him upside down, grinning at fulfilling whatever play she'd instigated.

Lyon would be lying if he deigned being a romantic. He was, incurably so. And not in the way of those stupid books. He was more the old fashioned kind of romantic, who held doors and pulled out chairs and asked permission and dreamed of a partner to stand by for the rest of his life. This was hitting a little too close to home with his personal fantasies.

Silently, he stared at her, heart pounding and palms sweating. This was much closer than he intended to ever get. He couldn't afford to do this. Biting his lip, he gently tried to untangle her. She stubbornly clung. He pulled harder. She clung harder.

"Oh come on!" she finally yelped pushing her face up into his and kissing him.

It was an awkward angle and he certainly wasn't in any state to make it easier for her. At one point their noses bashed together making her hiss in annoyance. Somehow, she twisted around so they were at least facing each other and got some leverage. Around that point, Lyon's other brain kicked in; the one he didn't want to be thinking with.

Reluctantly, he pulled away, looking at her in shock.

"You're a better kisser than I am!" he hissed, scandalized.

Her green eyes were still a little glazed but a lazy smirk that was reminiscent of his own lingered on her lips. Gray's comment about bad habits echoed in his mind. But Lyon couldn't bring himself to care. Because it was his smirk she was mimicking. And it was fetchingly hot. She snorted and shook her head, making her thick mane of hair sway, still leaning against him.

"Well, I've had some practice, you know," she remarked primly and his face darkened.

"I thought Jellal was too protective?" Lyon was about to join Jellal in that endeavor. Just thinking about who had kissed her previously made the ice mage a little warmer under the collar than he was used to. Correction, it pissed him the fuck off. He was considering if it was homicide if an inorganic ice animal did the murdering by ripping out a man's throat with needle-sharp fangs and letting him bleed to death on the ground.

Meredy nodded in agreement, "He is, with boys. But he can't argue when we're on a mission. And sometimes I need to go undercover, at parties and such. You know how it is. Plus, I have the best way to cheat."

He didn't but he nodded anyway. What kind of parties were these that she kissed random men? For what kind of mission? And it made her that good?

She squirmed, suddenly looking really uncomfortable, as if she realized something torturous. "Ul used to do it and she taught me the basics but since she… it still needs to happen… anyway, it doesn't go any further... And it's only for missions, I swear."

"You don't…" he made a gesture, hoping it wasn't too obscene or crass, before he could stop himself. She caught his meaning with wide eyes and flushed with anger, "No! You think – I wouldn't –!" She settled for scowling, seething with fury. Lyon was actually a little taken aback, only having seen her smiling and happy, and occasionally slightly annoyed. The only exception being that strange twist of fate when they fought the dragons, but he was far too busy then watching Juvia and Gray to notice some strange woman's behavior.

Cold fury radiated off her, and her face shut down, eyes dark and blank. She certainly did nothing by halves it seemed.

"No, no, I apologize. I was completely out of line."

Apologizing was a fail-proof strategy. Apologizing never went wrong. And he had been out of line. What a crude question to ask a lady! Lyon, what kind of moron are you? He asked himself mentally in irritation. That was some kind of stupid question Gray would ask, the clueless dunce. He should know better than that. She had every right to be furious, and he was kicking himself for ruining what had been a lovely day.

She shook her head slowly as she took a large step back from him, creating a chasm of space between them he was unwilling to follow into, not even addressing the kiss, only their words, "Forget it; I shouldn't have brought it up. That was my fault. Different guild politics… I don't expect you to understand." She waved her hand vaguely, refusing to look at him. It was practically a sock in the gut, and he winced slightly at the feeling.

Wonderful, and he had just highlighted how very different their worlds were too. He was striking out left and right. If it were anyone else, he'd be impressed at the sheer incompetence being displayed. It practically merited a slow clap of accomplishment. Since it was him, he scowled at himself. His standards should be higher than that!

Silence fell between them, heavy and angry, but frigid. Somehow, he'd imagined her anger would be a little more fiery. Lyon had no idea how to approach this issue. It certainly wasn't the first time his mouth had gotten him in trouble, but usually apologizing did something to soften the other party. Especially a sincere apology, which that had been. He couldn't have made it any more sincere. A rarity, to be sure, but he felt she was worth a little humility.

It wouldn't hurt to add a little more, he assumed.

"Please, forgive me; I meant no offense."

If anything, his second apology seemed to make her angrier because she drew a sharp breath, still refusing to look at him, and brushed off her dress. Head down, she spent a long moment collecting herself. He was actually quite impressed, expecting a much firmer tongue lashing or at the least some harsh words. Instead, she turned around with a painfully empty smile, which made his chest hurt in sympathy, and remarked they should go find the book.

Genteelly, he agreed, and allowed her the map, standing back slightly while she studied it.

So far they'd really only been to one store on the map, and the little Script Mage had circled seven. If this had been turned into a race, Lyon would be in dead last right now. That really irritated him, thinking that Gray might find the book first. Or that other appalling man. Technically, he was the destroyer of the book, and if he were also the finder of the book, the two would cancel each other out on his conscience. Plus, he did have a healthy fear of Titania's wrath, and he did not want to be on the warrior's bad side for such a mundane reason as a book. That would be an utterly dumb way to die.

"Well, I guess the closest store is on Hawthorne Street. But it looks like there is another one right across the way just a bit further. This map seems to be to scale, so maybe we should split up and hit both stores at the same time. Then we can meet up afterwards. There's still a lot of stores on the map, and we are running out of time." Also subtle coding for 'we wasted a lot of time,' Lyon noted. He was a little stung that she considered it a waste of time. Surely not all of it had been? The afternoon had been going quite well before he fucked it up royally.

"That's a very logical plan," he agreed mildly, keeping his tone light. At least she was still talking to him. "Which shop would you prefer?"

She a dusting of pink covered her cheeks and he realized one of the two was an adult shop. "The normal one."

"Certainly."

He did not tease her about it. It wasn't a place he wanted her wandering around in anyway. He merely inclined his head in the direction of the street the stores were on. She glanced at him, her green eyes locking on his for a moment. Fearlessly, he gazed back. He had nothing he was ashamed or embarrassed about regarding her. Sooner or later, she would hopefully confide in him what button he had accidentally pressed in his ignorance. Surely it was more than his poorly judged assumptions. In the meantime, he was going to treat her nicely, as he would any other acquaintance who he respected and admired. It was the least he could do for being so rude. He prayed that would be enough to earn her forgiveness for his trespass.

He didn't even want to think about the kiss. That, he locked away in a box in the back of his mind, for later. When she wasn't around to confuse the matter even more.

Unfortunately, neither store seemed to have the book in question in stock. But the man in Meredy's store had suggested another back alley store that wasn't on the map. He said it wasn't a bookstore, which probably explained its absence, but it was sort of like a pawn or antique shop. A mixture of both actually. And it had a section of older books. Who knows, they could get lucky.

And then he gave her his contact information.

Lyon was not pleased to hear that part of the story. She could have edited it out and saved him the urge to go back and freeze the man's balls.

"Well, this isn't sketchy," she muttered, walking down the alley in front of Lyon. She wasn't really addressing him so much as herself. Her words directed towards him were short and to the point, conveying information alone.

The alley, though, was narrow and fairly dark, although surprisingly clean. So, sketchy wasn't far off the mark. Magnolia seemed to be a very clean city, Lyon had noted, despite Fairy Tail's presence, or maybe because of Fairy Tail's presence. Perhaps the populace simply cleaned out of habit all the time in response to the destruction that happened weekly around the guild. He had wanted to go first, since they couldn't fit abreast, but she had slipped in ahead of him. There was no way to get around her without some serious tango and rubbing to change places, which, at this point and time, was not the thing to do. In any case, he was confident he could vault over her, if the need arose. Stubborn, stubborn girl.

On edge, he kept his senses pricked for any threats. This was one of the best places for an ambush, and he refused to be at anyone's mercy.

Sadly, any opportunities to show his devotion and stunning magical abilities did not appear. There were no thugs or dark mages or even full trash cans. The alley emptied into a sunny courtyard filled with potted plants and, oddly enough, cats. Lots and lots of cats and kittens sat around in the sunlight, completely unconcerned by the intruders.

"So cute!" Meredy squealed, picking up a little black and white kitten that didn't escape quickly enough.

She put it up to her nose and Eskimo kissed the poor little animal. The kitten screeched and batted at her face with tiny paws. On the one hand, it was adorable to hear her squeal like that; on the other hand, it probably carried rabies and Lyon simply could not allow her to let such a filthy creature near her face. What if it bit her? Or scratched her? Or shed some fleas on her? What if she was allergic to cats? It was bad enough the dragon slayers kept those talking cats around; the mundane, non-magical versions were far worse.

"Meredy, please, set the creature down. Clearly it is not enjoying your manhandling."

She scowled at him, her bottom lip poking out obstinately, but she set the tiny fluffball back down. It fled under a flower pot, hissing. The other cats had warily moved to higher perches or behind flower pots, watching the two with suspicious feline eyes.

Lyon didn't wait to catch whatever barbed retort she had for him for ruining her fun. He simply identified the shop and walked in. She followed him, still pouting, staring around at the collection of weird and eccentric items that filled every nook and cranky of the place.

Tired and hungry, Lyon zeroed in on the book section and threaded his way through the maze of tables and displays. He didn't see a clerk, but he figured the section was small enough it wouldn't take them long to look through it and find what they needed if the store carried it.

Meredy threaded easily through the crowded aisles, beating him to the section. It seemed he wasn't the only one wanting this uncomfortable mission to be at an end.

"Is this it, Lyon?"

Meredy held up a familiar looking book, a serious look on her face, rather than a grin of triumph. It was all business to her at the moment, which was kind of depressing. But she had found the book. It was in better condition than the other one, not nearly so well-read, probably given the fact that every girl in the guild seemed to have read the destroyed one, but the cover was unmistakably the right one. Even better, it seemed to be part of a series, he noted, judging by the other two books by her free hand on the table. They all had the same gaudy cover.

"Put that down. Do you normally go pawing through things that don't belong to you?" a fat woman waddled into the room from the back. An equally fat cat swung from her arms, squished and grumpy face glaring at them. Its tail swished back and forth in ire.

"Forgive us," Lyon said smoothly, cutting off Meredy's retort. She narrowed her eyes and folded her arms under her chest, not pleased with his interruption. Undeterred, he cleared his throat, turning his attention to the shop keeper, "We were told this was a shop with items for sale. We've been searching for a copy of this book, and it seems you have it."

"Not for sale," the fat woman replied, cutting him off sharply. She set the cat down on the table, and Lyon realized they were surrounded. By cats that is. There might even be more of them inside than there was outside.

"But this is a shop…" he protested, eyes narrowing in irritation. All the cats were starting to unnerve him. Their judgmental stares were getting to him. He really detested cats. Lyon was by far a dog man, if there were to be any animals at all.

"That doesn't mean everything in it is for sale. Get out."

"But… we need this book," Meredy protested, slightly intimidated but not letting go of the book.

"Too bad," the shopkeeper shrugged, her massive shoulders rolling with the motion. She petted the grumpy cat on the counter, waiting for them to leave. "Now get out. Before I call the police to remove you."

"As if the authorities could find this place," Lyon scoffed scornfully. "How much?"

"More than you have," the woman insisted. "Listen, you little scumbag, I don't need money. And I hate mages. So get out."

Glancing around, Lyon had an idea.

"What if I proposed a service rendering rather than money?"

"No."

Lyon ignored her, summoning his magic to his fingertips. Ice and snowflakes swirled over his fingers and palms, ghosting across his skin. He didn't even notice, forcing his attention and focus into creating first one little creature and then another. The two miniature kittens frolicked on his palm, clumsy and pudgy, chasing each other in a circle. Each one was a perfect replica of a live kitten down to the whiskers and stumpy little tails. One he created with tabby markings, the stripes aligned just so. The other he made into a Siamese, crafting the mask and stockings with delicate flicks of his fingertips.

With a snap of his fingers, the two kittens were encased into a glass-like globe, endlessly engaged in a game of chase over the frozen field filled with icebell flowers. Delicate snowflakes floated down like real snowfall, adding to the effect. He made sure to enclose a little of his ice magic into it, to ensure the kittens would never stop, twisting the magic just so to create an endless loop.

He almost dropped the snow globe when he realized how close Meredy was to him. It was only made of ice, granted magical ice, and would have shattered into a million pieces if he had, so he clutched it tighter in response. Her fingers reached over to gently pry his fingers out of the way so she could view it completely. In response, he cradled it in both palms, unblocking her view. She was leaning against his shoulder, chin propped up on it and hands against him to steady herself. Her breath was tickling against his neck warmly making him want to step away in self-defense or push her away, one of the two, but he couldn't move.

"That's amazing, Lyon," she breathed, making a shiver go down his spine. He smirked a little at the praise. The fat shopkeeper was also watching, pretending to be unimpressed, but he caught the look she was giving the globe. She wanted it. Very badly. A collector like her? Passing up something so beautiful and life-like made out of her very favorite things on the planet? In exchange for something that didn't even star (Lyon prayed to all things holy it didn't) cats in it? Please.

He'd won. Yes, he was just that awesome.

Sauntering out of the store with not only the replacement book but its two sequels, Lyon was feeling pretty accomplished. He couldn't wait to rub it in when they got back to the guild.

"I didn't know you could do that with ice magic."

A fuzzy feeling wormed through him, pleased she was talking to him again. It seemed even with cold anger, she found it hard to bear a grudge any longer than she was forced to. Lyon could learn a thing or two from her about that.

"It is a mere hobby of mine I occasionally practice when I am bored." There was a certain quality of humbleness in his explanation he rarely applied to anything else in his life. It was a facet of his magic he wasn't quite as secure in as he should be. Something he usually hid from most people.

"Is it going to melt? I mean, you didn't trick her, did you?"

She sounded so distressed he paused and turned around. She was eyeing him uncertainly, shifting from foot to foot at his sudden attention.

"No, it won't melt. I infused it with a minuscule amount of my magic placed in an infinity loop. It's something I learned from Yuka. As long as I live, the globe will stay the way I made it, unless that appalling woman or her appalling cats accidentally break it. It's still a snow globe after all." Relief washed over her features at his admission. Surely she didn't think he was that rotten? Yes, the woman was revolting, but he wasn't going to cheat her. Lyon tried to banish the pain that hit him at Meredy's lack of trust. The hilarity, a criminal concerned that he was going to be a cheat. He managed a serious look but not a smile, "But don't tell Gray. He'll never let me live it down if he learned I made kittens and snow globes…"

"Do you often make kittens?"

"No," he laughed sincerely at the curiosity in her voice, indignation fading a little, "Not often. But snow globes, yes, for my mini—friends and guildmates. They make wonderful gifts. Master Ur told Gray and me that Maker Magic allowed the user the utmost creativity, so I create harmless, beautiful things, every so often. In her memory."

"I wish I knew Ur; she sounds so wonderful," Meredy's wistful tone resonated within him.

Lyon gave a genuine smile, the rest of his resentment melting away. Years ago, the mere mention of his beloved mentor would have had the opposite effect, but now he could only smile. Ur would've liked Meredy; he knew that instinctively. He wished they could have met as well. But he wished a lot of things. But the truth was, his wishes weren't going to come true. Not those kind of wishes anyway.

"Master Ur would have loved to meet you as well."

Silence settled between them as they threaded their way back to the main street. But it was a warmer silence than before. She was content to follow him this time, her sandals slapping the pavement softly. "Say, Lyon?"

"Hmmm?"

"Could you… make me something beautiful? With your ice. Not a snow globe but something small I could take with me? I mean… if you want to… that is."

"Perhaps, as an apology. Let me think about what to make. Now, let's get these books back to the guild before something else happens."


	9. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update guys.

Chapter Eight

 

 

Gray yawned, once again at the guildhall at the crack of unholy. In fact, he actually beat Mira down, for once, and ignored her curious look as he fell backwards when she opened the door. The bed had become a place of evil; there was no way he could fucking stay there. All it did was make him think… about Juvia… and not in entirely wholesome and platonic ways. The last thing he needed was to have a sprained wrists or something then getting into an Ice Make war with Lyon.

Ordering the same breakfast as before, this was probably the most hot breakfast he'd eaten in a week's time since he was a child with Ur, he settled down to review the previous day's events.

Admittedly, they hadn't gone badly. Juvia was always much more subdued and focused when she thought they were partners on a mission. Actually, missions and fights were probably the only time Gray could take her seriously. He appreciated that he could really count on her when he needed her to be there. The fact that it wasn't a real mission didn't seem to matter; it was just her mindset about doing a task. Adding that to the fact that she'd really laid off on the creepy antics lately, it was almost… almost a date. Sort of.

Hell, he wanted it to be a date. There, he said it. To himself. So lame, so very lame. Well, he was his harshest critic, so winning himself over was probably the biggest hurdle anyway.

He had taken Juvia out to a nice little café, one that Lucy had mentioned, because he trusted Lucy to have taste at least. The food was good and affordable, and the outdoor seating was nice and sunny. It was even situated next to one of the many canals in Magnolia, which seemed to fit the mood pretty well. Besides, he noticed Juvia was always more relaxed around water.

So it was like a date… a first date. He kind of felt they should be past that by now but he realized they weren't. Not really. After all, they'd saved each others' lives numerous times. But, it was one thing to trust someone with his life. Hell, he trusted Natsu and Lyon with his life for Mavis' sake! It was quite another to trust someone with his feelings.

It was even worse when he realized he knew practically nothing personal about her. Sure, he knew a lot about her in some ways, but he was so ignorant in others. It really bothered him, because wasn't that something that irritated him about her? That she just blindly adored him and followed him around because she loved the idea of him? He didn't really feel like he could do that back. Sure, she had a great body and a great personality, but so did Lucy and Lisanna and Mira. And Erza, too, maybe. He wasn't planning on dating any of them, so what made Juvia special?

But he couldn't quite bring it up in conversation.

They chatted lightly about, well, things. Small talk, mostly. If they were actually going to find the book, what route they should take, if Meredy was okay with Lyon. That seemed to be where things went wrong, as they often did when Lyon was involved in Gray's life, the bastard. He wasn't even around and he was causing problems.

'Gray-sama, that is none of your business,' Juvia frowned, looking upset. She took a sip of water and added warningly, 'If you hurt Juvia's friend, Juvia will find it difficult to forgive you.'

He wasn't sure which friend she was referring too, and it irritated him that Lyon could be considered a friend. On the other hand, the friendzone was a perfect place for that arrogant bastard.

He wanted to argue that he had Meredy's best interests in mind. Lyon's best interests too. That both of them were his friends too, sort of, and his family. He didn't want either of them to be hurt. Okay, Lyon, maybe just a little, but not in that sort of way. Lyon, despite his egotistical exterior, was actually pretty sensitive about feelings and shit. Gray remembered how easily crushed the poor guy was as a child when Ur berated him or Gray said something too jaded and harsh. He worried, probably with justification, that Meredy might say something too blunt or tactless. Lyon hadn't met her like Gray had on Tenrou Island. Her personality might have bubbled up to the surface, but she still had a pretty sharp tongue sometimes. Gray didn't even think she knew what she was doing with it half the time, just saying things she probably said to Ultear or Jellal, not realizing how socially inappropriate it was for normal people. It's not like Jellal was the king of conversations or anything. And Ultear probably found her rude remarks amusing. Neither of them suffered from hurt feelings at the hands of a mouthy teenager, Gray was sure.

'You're right, Juvia. I don't want to hurt anyone. They're my friends too, you know.'

She gave him a look that made his stomach flip flop and put her hand over his. He usually would have shaken her off or ignored the gesture but he let the hand stay. He admired the steadfast kindness she had, even towards him when he was being a jerk. No, especially towards him when he was being a jerk. That spoke of a natural, genuine kindness, rather than the superficial one most people wore to look good. Gray wasn't dense enough to not recognize how rare a trait that was. He certainly didn't possess it!

He added it to his list of 'why I like Juvia.' Kindness.

Gray wasn't surprise this time when Meredy stumbled down to sit next to him, blurry-eyed and bedraggled.

"Why do you keep coming down here so early? Just sleep in for once," Gray grumbled, not really wanting to talk to her about anything. He had a distinct feeling his not-date had been orchestrated by the girls. He was beginning to think the whole guild was running a betting pool behind his back and everyone with fingers in the pie was fighting for a chance to meddle.

"Can't. Habit." Meredy grumbled back, rubbing her eyes pitifully. Her arms slapped the bar dramatically followed by her head hitting the wood with a dull thunk. Ouch, that sounded painful.

"So, Lyon said you guys found the book. Good job," Gray remarked, remembering that he wasn't in her good graces. He wondered how long she could actually hold a grudge. If it was anything like Ultear, he might have to wait years before she properly talked to him again.

"Meh," she grunted.

"We dodged a bullet there, right?" he tried again, concerned by the fact she hadn't moved from her faceplant on the bar.

"Meh," she grunted again, sounding less enthused than the first grunt.

"Are you okay?"

"Meh."

He chewed some pancakes reflectively while Mira unsuccessfully tried to coax Meredy into drinking some coffee and eating some food.

"You know, about yesterday…" Gray had to swallow some of his pride along with the mouthful of pancakes, "I was wrong. Juvia made a good point about it being none of my business. It's not. So, sorry."

"MEH," this time it sounded angry.

"Hey, I'm apologizing here! Accept my apology, dammit."

"…shouldn't… be…"

Gray blinked. Did he hear that right? No, he couldn't have. Because if he had, she'd just admitted what he said was right. Did women even do that? Admit they were wrong? Erza and Lucy certainly never did. Cana might die first.

Granted, he wasn't exactly jumping at the chance to say how wrong he was either. So maybe he was being too quick to judge.

Feeling like he might be stepping into some quicksand, Gray hesitantly probed, "Why's that?"

"…jerk… hate men…"

Gray sighed. It seemed like his afternoon hadn't been the only one with some rocky moments. At least he managed to salvage his time with Juvia. Actually, the rest of the time had been pretty great. They discussed maybe training together and hanging out some more. He learned Juvia had pets. Juvia promised to make Gray some cupcakes without causing a big disaster to make up for the other day. They actually ended up spending the day wandering around Magnolia, tracing the path of the canals, and talking. Like… actually talking. Normally. No weird antics, no Juvialand… just… Juvia. And Gray. Talking and enjoying being in each other's company. Twilight fucking light zone. But in the best way possible.

It was at that time he added sincerity to the list. Kindness and sincerity. It was a good start so far, in his opinion.

The whole book hunt thing had been a bust, of course, but Gray wasn't the one with his nuts in a vice, so he wasn't too worried about it. Erza would forgive Juvia, easily, since she tended to go easy on the girls, and then whale on the two assholes who messed up her book. In his mind, it was perfect. There was no downside to not finding the book and spending the time with Juvia instead.

Meredy hadn't been enjoying herself, clearly, going by her mopey, angry grunts.

Gray realized this may be the only time he'd ever hate being right.

"What'd the jerkwad do?" he sighed and rolled his eyes. Tentatively he gave her a pat on the back and she arched up like an angry cat. He retracted his hand hastily.

"Nothing…gonna join… nunnery…"

Meredy the nun, now there was a hilarious mental image. Well, cloaks were kind of like those crazy outfits nuns wore. But picturing her walking around sedate and serene while praying was too much.

"It can't be that bad," Gray snickered. More seriously, he added punching his fist into his palm, "Do you want me to go kick his ass for you? I can totally do that."

She lifted her head and gave him a weak smile, "You'd do that anyway. How would I know it was for me?"

He smirked cockily, "Cuz I'd say so. Then I'd make him beg and grovel at your feet for forgiveness."

"That's a little excessive," Meredy mumbled, her face now nestled in the crook of her elbow. She sighed heavily and poked at the coffee mug with an index finger. Sighing again, she gave him a hopelessly melted puppydog look of despair.

"How is he like… uggh!"

Gray totally understood that statement one hundred and ten percent. That's how he felt about Lyon. Thirty nine percent of him wanting to punch the shit out of the man at any given time, thirty six percent thinking he was a pretty cool dude, thirteen percent being utterly battled and irritated by his narcissistic attitude, twelve percent unadultrated love for his brother, and the rest of it a mixed bag of emotions that shifted like the weather. Their relationship was complicated.

Why were all the relationships in his life so fucking complicated?!

What was so wrong with him?

"So, how was your date yesterday?" she teased half-heartedly without any spunk. "Juvia wouldn't even tell me. She just said that you guys looked for the book and it was nice. But you seem pretty pleased this morning, so I think she's lying. Did you kiss her?"

Gray stabbed a piece of bacon. Which, predictably, didn't work. So he stabbed it a few more times, trying to spear it and make his point. Eventually he gave up because the strip was now smashed up into bacon bits.

"No, we didn't kiss."

Actually, Gray had tried, but Juvia got distracted at just the wrong moment. He ended up pressing his lips to her cheek, which triggered a meltdown. A literal meltdown, given it was Juvia. And somehow she still tried to rationalize it as an accident, even though he told her it wasn't. Then he had to sit there with a puddle of water for twenty minutes while she regained her solid form and composition. And talk to said puddle of water. Oh yes, everyone probably now thought he was quite insane. But it got an indulgent chuckle out of him, surprisingly, because it was just something that was so Juvia.

He added that to The List too: expressiveness. Expressiveness, sincerity and kindness.

"Why not?" Meredy sounded indignant, although Gray couldn't tell if it was on Juvia's behalf or because she wanted juicy details.

"Hey now, did you kiss? What kind of question is that to ask?"

Gray took in the suspicious silence. Oh, fucking hell. That bastard. Gray was going to de-ball him, slowly and painfully. With a fucking spoon. An ice grapefruit spoon with toothed edges!

"That asshole," Gray hissed, furious, rising to his feet. That went way past his flirting and pervy antics with Juvia. He generally trusted Lyon to know when to stop because the ice mage was usually pretty respectful. As much as Gray railed on the guy, since Lyon seemed to choose women he had a vested interest in, the other ice mage was the first to stop when told a direct no. An indirect no seemed to be open for interpretation, sadly, and that's what Gray concluded happened.

She bolted up, alarmed, and tried to pacify him, "You've got it all wrong. Lyon was a perfect gentleman – that's the probl—I mean, I instigated the kiss, not him. Gray, stop, seriously. If he knew I told—oh, please, don't make this worse. It was a mistake, okay?"

Reluctantly, he sat down, watching her sharply. He wasn't convinced she wasn't just covering for the sick monster. Satisfied he wasn't going to go pummel his brother, she gave him a mopey, miserable look again. Like she wasn't sure if she should actually be restraining him or possibly egging him on. Against his will, he reached over and ruffled her hair gently. It was actually something he'd do to Wendy, but it seemed fitting right now.

She pouted at the gesture and smoothed her hair, "I don't know what I'm doing…"

"I don't know what you're doing either…" Gray teased, earning a sulky glare. "Seriously though, you like him that much?"

Huh.

He'd kind of assumed that she was just, well, being weird. He knew Lyon was being weird. Lyon had been weird since that incident in the kitchen. Which now made a hell of a lot more sense. If Happy were around, he'd say his teasing catchphrase. Well, the blue cat was probably more astute about these sorts of things than Gray anyway. So maybe the two of them actually did kind of like each other… which was weird. But if it was mutual, Gray couldn't find it in him to object. Too much. Besides, a small, petty part of him pointed out that took Lyon neatly out of the running for Juvia's affecti—THAT RAT BASTARD.

The realization he'd been played crashed into him with the force of a brutal fist of Erza.

All this time… how long… did Juvia know? Did Meredy know? Did everyone but him know?

His eyes flicked towards where Cana usually sat. She was absent from her spot this morning, but he wasn't worried. She was like a stray cat; she came home when she damn well felt like it because that was where they fed her, or in her case, gave her alcohol. Oh yes, she'd be getting some alcohol later, lots of it. Because if anyone knew what was afoot, it'd be Cana or Mira, and Gray didn't feel confident enough to take on Mira.

Yet.

A devious grin made its way on his face, although Meredy missed it because she'd finally given into temptation and snagged the bacon off his plate.

"Why don't I tell you a little bit about Lyon as a kid? For fun, you know, to lighten things up," Gray offered, carefully dangling the bait. Oh, this was going to be good. He had to stifle a chuckle as she perked up, munching slowly, considering. Oh yes, she was cautious, but was she cautious enough? Could she resist his generous offer?

"Juvia would like to hear it," the woman said, slipping into her now-customary stool between them. She'd taken the time to actually get dressed this time, to Gray's disappointment. Not that he was complaining, but he realized he really liked her rumpled and natural first thing in the morning. It'd be even better if he were there too to see her stumble out of bed- oh Mavis!

She gave Gray a sweet smile, derailing his revenge plans for a second. But only a second. He gave her a lop-sided grin back, feeling ridiculously sappy, and glad that it was only them and Mira to see it. Meredy already fucking knew, so he didn't feel too exposed showing her his marshmellowy side. Mira knew everything in the guild too; it was pointless to hide it from her.

He scooted the stool closer, lowering his voice to a secretive level, and began, "Well… Lyon had some really weird quirks as a kid. It used to drive Ur crazy…"

"Did Lyon wet the bed? Juvia used to take care of many young children in the orphanage, and many boys wet the bed."

"Uh…" Lyon hadn't been the one wetting the bed. Gray cleared his throat, "No. Not Lyon."

"Gray, you wet the bed?" Meredy laughed too loudly and he shushed her frantically in case Natsu heard. Fortunately, the pink haired Dragon Slayer hadn't shown up for the morning. Yet. Since Lucy was on a mission, it was a good bet Natsu and Happy would come here for breakfast soon. Juvia just shrugged it off, giving Gray an understanding look that somehow made it more embarrassing, "It is very common."

"Will you two let me do this or not?"

Both of them clammed up, watching him expectantly.

"As I was saying…"

An hour later, when Lyon wandered in, freshly showered and gelled up, wearing new clothing, both girls clapped eyes on him and burst out giggling. The stunned and offended look in his slanty fox-face was fucking priceless. The fact that Gray had secretly slipped some Jewels to Reedus to capture the moment was fucking priceless. He was going to treasure that painting for-ev-er.

Meredy jumped up when Lyon started walking over and bolted, joining Natsu and Happy at one of the tables. Juvia looked confused, Lyon looked like he'd been slapped and Gray gloated, his suspicions now solidified.

He didn't even see the punch coming, he was too busy gloating.

Being socked in the jaw, however, was totally uncalled for. He iced it ruefully, but got more than a little satisfaction as Lyon was distracted by the distinct and painful awkwardness between him and Meredy. He was suffering worse than a little lovetap to the jaw. And Lyon deserved a little pain for making a move on her. She'd run over to Natsu for Mavis' sake; that had to be insulting. Yup, there was something going on there. Something Gray could exploit. Probably something Gray shouldn't exploit, but dammit, it wasn't like those two hadn't been meddling inhis love life. Turn about was fair play, right?

Right?

Now to put a mole in with the bookie because he was going to shake up this game. He might even win enough back to pay Cana's outrageous tab.

"What is Gray-sama thinking about?" Juvia asked curiously, her head cocked slightly, tilting her hair against her long, slender neck. He was noticing new things about here every time he blinked it seemed. Must be that fresh eyes things because he'd seen her a thousand times before. He'd know she was beautiful, but now he was seeing she was beautiful. Every freakin' inch of her, one blink at a time. And he couldn't wait to see the rest of her eith—holy hell, what was he even thinking? His mind needed to get the fuck out of the gutter this morning.

He studied her mildly as she ordered food and sat casually on the bar stool next to him.

Casually. Next to him.

Not on him, or over him, or touching him, or staring at him uncomfortably from a distance. She was sitting next to him without any weird looks or comments or vibes coming off her. She was comfortable; he was comfortable; he almost felt like he could flirt with her at this point. But not quite. There was still something warning him off, although it wasn't sure what it was. An invisible wall that still sat between them, daring him to break it.

Gray liked dares though. So, it was almost more of an invitation now...

It had taken awhile to see past her actions to the person underneath, but this was the Juvia he liked. The one he felt comfortable with, his friend. Not the loud and brash woman who chased him around with hearts in her eyes. This was the kind, sweet, lovable version who he got along with so perfectly.

It was so much easier to act naturally when she wasn't up to crazy antics that made him throw up his guard. He didn't mean to throw up his guard; he trusted her to never hurt him. But it couldn't help it. It worried him that she was slipping in the cracks. Too many cracks for her to slip into now that she'd discovered them. Instead of trying to bash down his walls, she was being subtle, getting a foothold. It didn't hurt that he felt ready to let her in, at least a little. Maybe not as much as she wanted, but considering he was seized with awkward stuttering fits and butterflies in his stomach, not to mention the wanting, she was definitely going to have more success than she did before.

Gray was beginning to realize that the thicker and higher the walls, the harder they had to fall. It was hard to keep up a sheer, unbreakable surface. He'd managed it for years by simply shutting everyone out. He interacted with them, sure, but only in the shallowest ways possible. He had done most of his jobs alone, lived alone, spent his time alone…

Until Team Natsu. And then Juvia. And everyone else, the triumphs they shared and the traumas they suffered. Together. Once they were in, it was impossible to rebuild that smooth, flawless surface.

Maybe Lyon had a point. Maybe the Fairy Tail guild members were too hamfisted and overkill about their friendship. Maybe they liked to preach and lecture about the glories of Fairy Tail's tenants like they were religious fanatics. But he knew he could count on every one of them to have his back. Juvia especially.

Loyal, another one on The List.

"Now Gray-sama is smiling? Did Juvia say something funny?" Juvia asked, peering closer in concern, filling his vision. He watched her lean in, the smile still on his lips. Playfully, he pinched her nose. She squeaked and grabbed it, giving him a googly-eyed look that made him smile a little a little wider. She stared at him, muted by his voluntary touch and friendly smile.

"No, it's nothing. I was just thinking how funny life is. One little twist and things could be really different, you know?" Gray replied, feeling relaxed. It was true. There were so many what-ifs, but all in all, things hadn't turned out too badly.

She gave him a tentative smile back, still looking a little uneasy, but earnest, "Juvia knows. Juvia is very thankful for Fairy Tail. Otherwise, who knows where Juvia and Gajeel would have ended up. Dead maybe. Or broken… more broken. But thanks to Fairy Tail, Juvia met Gray-sama. And many other friends, even her love rival, Lucy. Juvia never had friends before…"

"Yeah, I know the feeling."

"But Gray-sama had Lyon and Ur," Juvia protested at the sadness in his tone.

He wondered how many years of his life he wasted being a dumb jerk. He pretty much grew up in the guild and didn't have any real friends besides Cana the whole time? How pathetic was that? Geez.

"Yeah, but they weren't my friends. Ur was…" he couldn't even put into words what Ur was to him. It was all jumbled up still. Even though she'd sealed the darkness, some of it anyway, and she'd saved him and cared for him, he couldn't articulate how he felt back. Friend did not even being to cut it.

Juvia seemed to sense this and put a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Ur was a precious person to Gray-sama."

Compassion.

"Yeah, she was. She is, actually, because she still lives in my heart, right? And Lyon's too, I think."

Why not go all out on the sapfest here? Pretty soon he would be sobbing like a baby if he wasn't careful.

"Gray-sama!" Juvia tackled him.

Damn, it was almost a record too.

Instead of pushing her off, he drew her in closer, and gently grabbed her hands to still them. Satisfied she wasn't going to trip or throw him off balance, he leaned down a little towards her face. Mindful that they were still in the guildhall and not a big fan of public affection, he wasn't really planning on doing anything too extreme. Just a little something to get the message across. It seemed like she hadn't been getting his more subtle hints, you know, like the looks and attempted kisses and allowing her to touch him, so he felt like he needed to do something a little more concrete. He knew she was a bit of a spacecase but even she would have to get this.

She rested against him, paralyzed, barely breathing, eyes wide with shock, before violently shoving him back with a blood-curdling shriek. Yelling in surprise, he lost his balance, toppling over the back of the stool, and landing in a painful heap. It wasn't the first time he'd gotten intimate with the wooden floors, but it was definitely one of the more painful moments between them. Usually he was expecting to crash land and softened the impact by falling correctly. This time he'd be totally caught off guard and hit hard.

Juvia just pushed him!

He had not been expecting that at all.

"Ouch," he groaned, watching Juvia take off towards the dorms. Or the ladies' room. Either way, he couldn't really follow, could he? "What'd I do?"

Well, Erza wasn't here right now…

He recalled Meredy's view on getting caught. He could probably waltz right into the dorms right now, but there was no way of knowing who would tattle on him or when it would come back to bite him in the ass.

Climbing to his feet, he stopped to really think about it. Juvia just threw him off of her. THREW. With force. What in the hell just happened? Why'd she go and do that?

Mira was watching him, worry in her blue eyes, "Gray…"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Oh dear," Mira replied quietly. "You upset her."

"What? That's ridiculous. She threw herself at me. All I did was try to hug her back!" And maybe do a little more than hugging, if he was being honest. But only if she wanted to. Which she obviously did fucking not want to, he thought to himself, good mood obliterated to hell. Scowling, he rubbed his jaw, eyes narrowed at the doorway she fled through.

He wasn't mad exactly. Just really confused. She liked him, and he liked her, and it was supposed to be all good now, right?

So what the hell happened?

Somehow he fucked this up; he just knew it.

Was she playing payback for all the times he rejected her? No, that wasn't like Juvia at all. Mira had to be right; somehow he upset her. Maybe he even frightened her. He'd rather have Natsu beat him to hell and back than frighten Juvia, even on accident.

"Mira, let me in the dorms, please? I need to talk to her and find out what happened."

"Gray, just leave it," Cana said rolled her eyes. She flipped her hair back and grimaced, "Sheesh, give the girl some space, wouldja?"

"But… I should talk to her…" he protested, looking between them, confusion growing at the knowing looks on their faces. Isn't this when the supportive girlfriends step in and give advice and encouragement?

"I knew this was going to happen," Mira remarked softly and Cana shrugged knowingly, "Shoulda just fucked her."

"What? What's going on?"

"Gray Fullbuster, I forbid you from stepping one foot in the dorms. Those are for girls only, you know that. And if you disobey me, I will personally ensure Erza finds out, but before that I will deal with you myself."

For the second time that week Gray found himself scared to death, on the wrong end of Mira's wrath. And he didn't even know what the fuck he did to deserve it! He was beginning to realize this was probably how Natsu felt a lot of the time being on the wrong end of the Lucy Kicks for no damn good reason he was aware of. Except Lucy usually had a pretty good reason, so Gray could only logically assume that there was a good reason behind this too. But hell if he could figure it out.

Gray felt like a moron.

"I feel like an imbecile," Lyon remarked as he sat down on the stool next to where Gray was standing. He leaned against the counter, arm propping him up in artistic angst. He was such a drama queen. "I also feel like I may require some escapism. Something strong, please."

"Me too. The same, Mira," Gray echoed as he sat down.

The two commiserated in silence.

"What did you do, Gray?"

"Nothing. What'd you do, Lyon?" Gray snapped back, eyes flashing, looking for someone to fight with.

"Nothing that Jellal would approve of, I assure you. I do not need your condescending lecture, however, as I am well aware of the situation." Lyon didn't even bother to look at him. Lofty fucker.

Gray gave a cynical snort at Lyon's arrogance, "Are you now? Guess that's why Meredy, Happy, Natsu and Romeo are over there playing cards. I hear Go Fish is the new rage."

"And Juvia ran off making a scene is any better?" Lyon retorted, antagonism flickering under his icy tone. His fists were balled up, spoiling for a fight, "If you h—."

"Save it," Gray felt the fight drain out of him and he knocked back the alcohol Mira had set in front of him. Gagging a little at the unexpected burn—she'd given him something pretty stiff—he rolled his eyes and motioned for more. It was a little early in the day to be hammered, but he felt it was probably a good short term solution to his misery.

Besides, he almost called Lyon out on his little farce, and as far as Gray was concerned, Lyon was not off the hook for that by a long shot. Not at all. And it wouldn't do to tip him off to the revenge coming his way.

But first he had to figure out what was going on with Juvia. Geez, just when he got himself sort out, this happened. He was supposed to be the reluctant one with issues; she was supposed to provide the undying, unwavering, unconditional love…

Fuck.

He downed the second glass, ready for the burn this time. It was welcoming but not as distracting as he'd hoped.

Part of his twisted reasoning about Juvia's feelings was that he wanted things to be equal between them. He didn't feel right sitting there on a pedestal, a throne, while she heaped offerings at his feet. But then here he was expecting her to carry the whole weight between them while he got his shit together. And now that he got his shit together – well, mostly got his shit together – he was still expecting it. What kind of lowly douchebag approached someone, let alone someone they liked, with those expectations? What a fucking hypocrite. He was so scared of screwing up that he screwed up without even realizing it. What good was being so introspective and critical if he missed something so fucking obvious.

"Lyon, the Master would like to speak to you in his office," Mira remarked when he motioned for another refill. She gave him a pitying smile and Lyon groaned softly. Gray tore himself away from his inner misery for a moment, vaguely wondering what Makarov would want with the other ice mage. Nothing good. Gray kind of almost felt sorry for the guy. "You also, Gray."

Great, just fucking awesome. He couldn't even get smashed in peace.

Grumpily, and a little bit tipsy because Mira followed instructions too well, he followed Lyon back towards the office.

This better be worth dragging him away from the bar.


	10. Chapter Nin

 

Chapter Nine

 

 

Lyon wished he'd been quicker to drink the alcohol he'd ordered. Although, he was sure it wasn't going to waste, what with the Card mage circling the bar like a drunken shark. He hoped she at least took the time to savor his drink for him. Doubtful, but the thought made him less regretful about his lack of haste.

"Pouting is rather unbecoming," he muttered to himself. He wasn't sure exactly which one of his companions he was referring to or if he was reminding himself.

"Your guildmaster is a sadist," Lyon informed them with a scowl, leaning back against the seat behind him and tilting his head back. He didn't look to see if either one of them were listening. This was clearly a sadistic sort of punishment for botching his mission. He could think of no other reason why he was sitting these two very unhappy mages. It was an exceedingly uncomfortable place to be, and even Lyon was uneasy. Lyon and uneasiness were not even nodding acquaintances typically, which only added to his ire.

"Shut it, will ya, Lyon? We already know that," Gray replied quietly under his breath. He was probably sneaking a glance across the space Lyon occupied at the moment. Lyon was quite strategically placed for a reason. This was the only way he could imagine that would keep the collective awkward and foul mood from spilling over into the innocent civilians on the train. It wasn't their fault that their luck was so terrible as to be trapped with the three of them.

Lyon was not a babysitter; this was degrading.

Well, if it was a punishment, he would just have to submit to it. If for no other reason than his distraction had somehow led to this massive oversight in his plan. It wasn't like him to make such a gross oversight, and it was shameful. Gray had reacted perfectly… it had been flawless. How could he possibly forget that there was another part of the equation?

"Juvia, would you…?"

"Juvia would not."

Lyon sighed, moving closer to Gray, who predictably shoved him back. He was just going to ask her if she could move over a little because he was overheating with her sitting next to him, boiling like a teakettle. Shrugging off his jacket, he wadded it up and stuffed it behind his head carelessly and crossed his arms in boredom. Normally he would fold it more carefully, to avoid wrinkles, but at the moment he couldn't bring himself to care. At this rate, he was probably going to lose it anyway, which was a shame, since it was the new jacket Meredy had picked out for him.

Frowning deeper, he stared at the ceiling. It was, predictably, filthy and probably not up to code. Idly, he watched a spider cross slowly and carefully. The black bug's life looked pretty appealing right now. Walk around on the ceiling, eat some bugs, find a nice spider girl… get eaten and nourish the future generations. The simple life.

At least he'd know what to expect.

"Juvia, dear, you're sloshing," Lyon remarked evenly as scalding hot water hit his arm. With a slight click of the tongue, he iced the spot and glanced over at the water mage. She had her chin resting moodily on her palm, facing the aisle, with her back to both ice mages. If he was expecting a nice, polite or sweet reply, the typical Juvia reply, he was sadly disappointed. "Juvia does  _not_  slosh."

"Beg your pardon," Lyon humored her, his eye catching something interesting. He stood up slowly, brushing off his slacks, and stretching lightly. He waved off Gray's question, and wandered down the aisle. If he had to sit there for another moment he might have done something he regretted.

Letting himself out the back of the train, he stumbled over something. Grunting, the ice mage caught himself on the iron railing. The flesh of his palms stung and burned, since the metal had been sitting in the sun all day, and he retracted them with a quick curse. Hissing in annoyance, he iced them too. Angry red blistered raised under the skin, burned in too deeply to be soothed by the ice. Today was not the day for cosmetic blemishes to his skin. Scars from battle were one things; burn pock marks were quite another. There was no victorious story to be told behind being splashed by an angry water mage or klutzily falling into an iron railing. If nothing else, he could have toppled over said railing, and wouldn't that make his day just peachy?

"Are you okay?"

Lyon stared down at the scruffy pre-teen boy. Big, brown eyes stared back up guiltily and a small mouth was pursed in anticipation of being struck. Wild brown hair stuck up every which way as the boy bobbed his head towards the ground and whimpered out an apology.

"I am fine," Lyon remarked, reigning in his surprise and his temper. Why anyone would be sitting on the back of the train out in the elements was beyond him. The train was destined for a rather chilly place after all. In a few hours, this little deck area would be coated in ice and the wind would be howling, cold and dark. It was no place for a human being; even an ice mage would have a rough time with it once they got deep enough into the mountains. "I take it you do not have a ticket,  _boy_."

"Of-of course I do!"

"Show it to me then," Lyon replied condescendingly, holding his hand out expectantly. The boy looked away, puffing out his cheeks and growling. As Lyon suspected; the other was a stowaway on the train. Well, that was no matter. However, he couldn't stay out here. If he had any sense, he would have hidden in the baggage car with the luggage. It was guarded but a clever child could find a way in. Children were like rats after all; they were smart and small enough to get into anything.

"As I thought. Come with me."

"Don't wanna."

"Too bad that was not a request," Lyon remarked with a smirk. He twirled his fingers and conjured up some ice magic, "Unless you want ice ants in your pants for some motivation?"

The boy scrambled up hastily, brushing off his knees and looking angry. Lyon grabbed the back of his shirt, as he tried to bolt past and whacked into Lyon, and frog-matched him in. The parade of shame continued until he returned to where Gray and Juvia were seated. His seat in the middle was still empty, and Gray was watching Juvia out of the corner of his eye. Juvia was steadfastly ignoring him, staring at Lyon's approach. Juvia blinked as Lyon shoved the boy, gently, past her into his seat. She gave Lyon a curious look, the least threatening look he'd received from her during the whole mission, but didn't say anything. Even this wasn't going to break her mood. It was nice to know she applied her amazing resolve to  _everything_  involving Gray.

He'd heard stories about how impressive Juvia could be when she was riled, or how creepy she could be when she was gloomy. He had never heard any stories about how she was when she was angry. He was beginning to realize  _why._ Because if he weren't an S-class mage of substantial power and guts, he would probably be spending this train ride in the bathroom, hiding. If he were Gray, with more brain cells of course, he would also be spending some time hiding. Gray couldn't seem to take a hint though, stubbornly seated near her, hovering and stalking. Stupid moron had a death wish; that was the only explanation.

Instead of being cautious, it made him smirk with pride. As much as he liked her kind and gentle and polite behavior, it was also nice to know she had some fangs as well. Of course, she was a Fairy Tail mage, so he knew she was a fighter. But so far all he'd seen of her was her hovering and reacting to Gray. Gray-sama this and Gray-sama that. It was revolting to be quite honest, and part of what prompted him to throw himself at her initially. Because he could immediately see, right off the bat, her potential. And it had  _nothing_  to do with his dick of a brother Gray. Or his brother's dick, for that matter.

"Wow, you're really scary, lady!" the boy remarked, wide-eyed and innocent. "Why are you so sloshy though?"

She stuck her lip out and replied haughtily, "Juvia is  _not_  sloshy."

Lyon had trouble keeping a straight face at her response. But he knew right now would not be a good time to let his amusement show. The boy shrunk back into Gray. Gray just huffed in irritation, having lost both his shirt  _and_  his pants in Lyon's absence. Really now.

"What's with the kid, Lyon?"

"I adopted him," Lyon retorted with a straight face. The boy gave a huge grin, pleased at the proclamation. Gray and Juvia both looked at him like he'd grown a second head. "You moron, I found her- him out on the caboose when I went out to get some air. Do you propose I leave him out there to freeze to death? I trust you actually remember our destination?"

"Oh, right. I guess that makes sense. Hey, kid, what's your name?" Gray asked, placing a kind hand on the boy's head and giving a reassuring grin.

The child stared up at him, blinking, "Why're you naked?"

Gray twitched in irritation but hastily retrieved his pants, which had been kicked off on the floor. Once he put them back on, he cast around for his shirt. Lyon held it out with one finger extended so it dangled over Juvia's lap. Gray hesitated, torn between maintaining his dignity and upsetting his fellow mage. Juvia was willfully ignoring them both, staring across the train again, acting as though the teasing was so far beneath her she couldn't bother to acknowledge it with so much as a glance. Which it probably was, but that didn't stop Lyon. Lyon leered, practically daring him to take it and wiggly the shirt tauntingly. He ignored the venomous look he received in response as Gray sat back and put his arms over his chest in refusal to play any games.

Coward.

Lyon flipped the shirt towards him, tired of holding it up. Gray hastily threw it on, tugging the tight v-neck over his torso, and making sure it covered everything. His jacket was still thrown between him and the window, wedged in the crack where he couldn't tug it out. After a few tries, the man managed to get it out and promptly chucked it at Lyon's head. Lyon rolled his eyes, catching it in mid-air, before tossing it back down on the seat between them.

"Move over Gray."

Gray obliged, and Lyon slid over Juvia with a few words of pardon. She flashed him an icy look but said nothing. The boy crammed between the two ice mages, where the cup holder would normally have been, if Lyon hadn't shoved it up between the seats. Fortunately, Makarov had given them first class tickets, probably as a poor concession for the utter shit that was the rest of the mission, so the seats were just big enough for the three to squeeze in together. Juvia got her own space for the moment, but no one was objecting to that; they all wanted to live.

There was a tense moment when the ticketmaster came by, noticing that the number of people didn't match the seats. Lyon smoothed it over, remarking that the woman seated next to them had been in another car but asked to sit with them because she'd been harassed. Juvia certainly looked the part, and the ticketmaster hurried off to find the so-called sexual harassment culprits in the next car. Lyon wasn't surprised when he never returned.

"You could sit in my lap," Lyon offered the boy, noticing he was shivering being wedged between the two of them. Gray and Juvia had both nodded off, tired from their silent, tense fight. Lyon couldn't resist, now that they were out like lights, "Snoopy."

The "boy" giggled and shimmered slightly, changing into his favorite cloaked figure. Tugging down the cloak a little further, she shoved Gray over a little, making the sleeping man grunt in annoyance and cuss out Lyon, and kicked out her feet, crossing them at the ankles. She rolled her expressive green eyes at him and snorted dismissively, "You'd like that, wouldn't you, Lyon?"

"Very much," he whispered back playfully, mindful of the two napping mages. The debacle from the day before was in the back of his mind but he somehow just couldn't resist a little flirting. Just a little, though. He wasn't sure how to justify it, but it slipped out anyway. "Although, it might give the image of me being into little boys. Which I am most certainly not into little boys. Just for the record."

"How'd you figure it out?" Meredy mock pouted, sounding curious. Whatever she was angry at him about before seemed to have disappeared or at least faded. He was wise enough not to bring it up now while they were in public next to two sleeping mages, but they would be having a conversation about it at some point during this trip. An uncomfortable one, probably.

There were other issues at hand anyway, since she was not supposed to be here.

And she followed orders just about as well as any Fairy Tail mage. Which was fine by him. He wasn't sure how long he could stand between Scorching and Chilly without either getting annoyed, giving up or saying to hell with it all, knocking their heads together and locking them in a room the way Cana suggested. The last idea was exceedingly tempting.

Juvia had made it known that she was very angry at both Gray and Lyon, and her wrath was no joke. Gray claimed he had no idea why. Then again, this was the guy that took three fucking years to realize what a wonderful, beautiful woman he had waiting for him. So forgive Lyon for not trusting his judgment on the matter. As for Lyon, whatever he had done was due to his association with Gray, somehow, he just knew it. And he'd dealt with enough angry women to know when was a good time to back off and give them time to work through whatever pissed them off. And if she was going to work through _someone_  he'd rather it be Gray and not him.

So Meredy was actually a very good thing. Hopefully she could cool Juvia down, and keep Lyon sane.

Shifting so Meredy couldn't possibly hear his too-loud heart thumping at her proximity, he offered a genuinely pleased smile. He must have been staring a little too intently though because she squirmed a little, and looked away suddenly, passed him at Juvia. Her smile chipped a little at the sight of the water mage curled up away from them on the seat. Lyon had draped Gray's jacket over her and used his own to pillow her head, sure that she was going to wake up chilled and sore sleeping like that. Not to mention the killer crick in her neck without a pillow. At least she wasn't boiling in her sleep. She'd cooled down to a normal temperature but was still frowning heavily, brows drawn down, sleep fitful. Lyon resisted the urge to stroke her hair, keeping his hands tucked up behind his head.

"I saw your link on Juvia's wrist and remembered it from when you showed me before. Believe me, your illusion was very impressive. I would not have had any inkling at all without such a hint. It would take a dragon slayer nose to ferret you out otherwise." He couldn't help adding with a smirk, "Besides, your chest gave you away when I pulled you inside."

Lyon was impressed not just giving her lip-service. Disguising oneself with magic was a difficult trick to master, although anyone with magical talent could probably do it. In theory, it was simple. One projected the image they wanted over their physical self. It wasn't like she was doing Take-Over magic or Transformation magic, where her body changed. She was just changing the perception of those around her. It was impossible to change her size or mass or smell. She was projecting a completely different image to the one she held in her head about herself. It was difficult for the mind to keep the two images separate, and magic without consistency generally failed. But she had kept the image up the whole time, even though he must have surprised her greatly when he tripped over her and then abducted her into the train. The only time the image wavered was when she saw Juvia, and it only flickered for the merest of seconds.

It was something he wasn't sure he could accomplish, especially not without practice. Apparently being a wanted criminal provided you with some interesting skills and abilities.

"Aww man, that gave it away? Well, I had to track you guys somehow. And I still haven't figured out how to deal with these." She twirled her hair, not looking particularly upset he'd seen through her game, and gestured to her breasts with a roll of her eyes. And she had been inching towards his lap, he noticed, one thigh already hooked over his. He pretended not to notice, which was a little bit difficult, considering their immediacy.

If her kiss hadn't given away her feelings towards him, this definitely was a clue.

Lyon wasn't quite sure what to do with this. He wasn't the one usually being chased. In an instant, he realized who she'd probably be talking to or at least taken advice from. That Card Mage was troublesome, throwing a ticking timebomb at him. A beautiful, lovely, sexy ticking timebomb. But she'd definitely earned his abandoned scotch for her efforts, no matter how vexing the results were.

"Do you honestly think I would bring some runaway  _boy_  back to my seat and  _cuddle_  with him?" Lyon asked incredulously ducking his head for a quick chuckle. She was giving him far too much credit. If it had been some random kid, he'd be a popsicle by now, or nice and warm in the care of the railroad authorities' office. "You would be frozen to the back of the train at this very moment, if you were some brat."

"I would've snuck into the baggage car, eventually. Suitcases can be surprisingly comfy to sleep on, if you know which ones to pick. I was just enjoying the fresh air outside. I didn't realize some big goof was going to trample me!"

"I did not realize some street urchin was going to be leaning against the door of the caboose," he fired back.

"Ul always said to be someone unexpected." Meredy paused a little, probably at the mention of Ultear, then she added happily, "I'm glad you weren't Natsu though."

"I am glad I am not Natsu as well," Lyon wrinkled his nose. While Dragon Slayer magic would be immensely useful and powerful, there seemed to be numerous catches that he really didn't want to deal with. The least of all being that all the Dragon Slayers seemed to follow their noses like animals. If Lyon wanted something that could follow a scent, he would conjure up some bloodhounds. "Speaking of which, how can you be sure he isn't following you? If I recall, you were not supposed to leave the guild. That was the whole point of the giant fit you threw, remember?"

She fidgeted uncomfortable at his accusation, looking downcast. Or maybe she was embarrassed about her fit, which did Natsu proud. Literally, since the Dragon Slayer shouted his approval when she finished. His heart pinched at the sight but he held out on the stern look. It was no small matter to ignore orders from a guild master. Clearly she had gotten used to doing as she pleased without any consequences in Jellal's care. That was a dangerous mindset to have as a mage. He learned that lesson quite well.

"You don't want me around?"

"I certainly do want you around," he replied honestly, refusing to fall into her blatant blackmailing trap. She looked hopeful for a moment and he added sternly, "But you were to stay where you would be safe."

Burying her face into his shoulder, she mumbled something he couldn't make out. For a brief instant, he savored her warmth, before gently fishing her out. Curse his ridiculously soft heart. It was probably better to dole out some tough love but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He would never be so soft with his minions. And he planned to be a guild master? Pah, this was utterly ridiculous that he couldn't bring himself to be harsh with one woman. Granted, she wasn't just  _any_  woman, but still, that was beside the point.

Something needed to be said.

"Repeat that, please."

A strange sort of vulnerable emotion shimmered in her bright eyes as she said staring up at him, "It's childish; I can't tell you."

"I will be the judge of that. I hardly think anyone who takes the time and effort to do what you did just to tag along on a pointless mission has childish reasons."

"I… don't like being left behind," she admitted, shamefaced. She scooted away from him toward the unconscious Gray. He snagged her around the waist, cutting off her retreat, and considered the matter for a moment in silence. While it did sound childish on the surface, Lyon knew enough about childhood trauma, having lived through it and seen it over and over, to realize there was more going on here. She wiggled away, tugging her hood up tighter to shield her face from him, "See, I told you, it's childish."

"Hmm, I do not quite understand. I need more information to make a sound and rational conclusion to this question of if you are being childish or not."

"That's a… reasonable request…"

His fingertips found the ends of her hair that had escaped over her shoulders and out of the hood. Idly, he twirled them, marveling at how beautiful a color it was. He and pink had a love-hate relationship of sorts. Meredy didn't seem to notice his transgression though, thinking hard about what she was going to say.

"I am a reasonable man," he tried to keep the purr out of his voice, he really did. Somewhere in the back of his brain, he was struggling to remember to cool it. There were lines to observe, and right now, he didn't even know where the line was, it was so blurred. He was getting mixed signals here, and it was making him hesitate and fight himself about what was right.

Lyon was not a man of grays.

Lyon liked black and he liked white, the clear cut conciseness made things easy. Black and white allowed decisiveness, black and white allowed force, black and white allowed logical application. All of these things were appreciated by him. He was a man who liked to follow a strict regime to the point where he could be, as Sherry termed it, "fussy" about things not falling into place or being where they should. It was a minor flaw, one he viewed as petty and unimportant, because if he wanted to, he could make things black and white. And then he dealt with them appropriately.

He was about to make this black and white. His patience for grays, all kinds of grays he thought shooting at glance at his brother, was gone.

He had the patience and charisma and drive to make anything the way he wanted it, especially when it involved other people. Because, unlike Gray, Lyon thrived off the company of others. He needed and wanted to be in a position to help, guide and direct others with his ambition.

It sounded bad in that light, since he'd used that charisma and connection to do some rather stupid things in the past. It was that whole fixation thing. Once he set a goal, he'd do anything to reach it. But it didn't change the feelings behind his actions.

He wanted to become a Wizard Saint because, once, someone had remarked if Ur had lived longer, she would have been one. Therefore, logically, to complete his childhood dream, he also had to become a Wizard Saint. The farce on Galuna Island had been nothing but the fruitless and foolish attempts to reach that dream, concocted by a hurt child. But even as an adult, he simply couldn't give it up. Becoming a Wizard Saint was practically within his grasp now.

But his true calling was guild master; he felt it every time the old woman gave him command, testing and guiding him, molding him for the day he stepped up to power. Even the most tedious and mundane tasks were satisfying if he resolved some sort of personal element within his guild. He would miss the thrilled of S-class missions, and he would utterly loathe the paperwork, but at the end of the day, it was his calling.

Even so, he felt lonely. Surrounded by people and connections but connected to nothing at all, even within his own guild. It was hard for him to go deeper, to really make that connection with someone else. Sherry had pointed it out multiple times: that he was too cold sometimes.

But he found it hard to warm up to most people. It was simply a fact of his nature.

Thoughtlessly, he traced patterns lightly on the fabric covering her back. Nonsense patterns that held no meaning other than to be soothing. She closed her eyes, lips parted, and relaxed slightly. Whatever fear she harbored was slipping away, filling him with a deep satisfaction. One he'd never really experienced before. In turn, he felt himself relaxing, not realizing how tense he'd been, trapped between Juvia and Gray. At one time he would've rejoiced in their fight, he realized ruefully.

"It's just stupid. I know this mission is like, only for two days, but you guys just… left me. I'm only at Fairy Tail for a week, and I was afraid… well, that I wouldn't see you guys before Jellal came back and we had to leave again. Like… the train was delayed or your mission ran into complications or Jellal finished his task early. I… I don't like it when people I love are out of my sight. Bad things seem to happen to them. And then I never see them again. Like Ul… I didn't… and then she… See, childish?"

Lyon hummed, watchful for any signs he needed to put on the brakes. The truth was coming out now. It was brutal and ugly, and he suspected that every single one of them could relate to her fears. Too many bad things happened not to. To their parents, to their childhoods, to the people in their guilds…

But fears were a form of weakness that chained them down. They paralyzed and caused hesitation. They ate dark holes in the soul, if they grew strong enough. The best way to deal with fears was to face them. And sometimes, one needed some outside help to do so.

Carefully, he took her hand, forming the words in his head before speaking; the words he wanted to say to make his point without breaking her. She grabbed it gratefully, not twining their fingers together, just holding it in a vice grip.

"So if you watch, then bad things will not happen to those you love?"

Meredy seemed to catch his meaning, eyes widening in horror. Lyon wasn't sure how much Gray or Ultear had told her about Ur's sacrifice. But there was a very real reason why both Lyon and Gray had been shaped the way they were. And part of that reason was losing their beloved mentor right in front of them, unable to change fate. Hell, he didn't even get to watch. How shameful it was to wake up later and have no idea what happened!

Both their eyes shot to Gray simultaneously. Meredy paled a little and gritted her teeth, looking away abruptly. Lyon shoved the feeling off. It was just a  _nightmare_. Obviously the other ice mage was just fine, hale and hearty, and not dead. Still, he had to choke down the bile that rose in his throat at the thought, a tiny bit of thoughtless terror welling in his chest. A  _nightmare_ , he reiterated sternly, shoving it down and taking a long, grateful look at his sleeping brother.

"Well… I suppose bad things would still happen."

He nosed the junction of her neck as a reward, making a shudder run through her and a shiver run through him. This was a terrible location to be having this conversation, although their voices were pitched low, and most of the car was asleep now with the lights dimmed. The fact that they were in public was probably the only thing saving him right now.

"Exactly. So how do you propose to stop them?" He pressed an open mouthed kiss to her neck, just over her pulse. It was tender and light, testing. She gave a fluttery sigh in response that he took as encouragement. He made his point bluntly, in direct opposition to his gentle ministrations, "Would you simply stop having loved ones? That is the most logical, if brutal, solution. Having nothing to lose would simplify things drastically."

"N-no…" She scooted closer, forgetting about personal space. He pressed a few more kisses carefully to her exposed skin when she tilted her head in silent permission before he could stop himself. She didn't seem to mind, just remarked, "That's just silly."

"Being mindful of the ones you love is not childish, Meredy. It means you care," he corrected her, tucking some hair behind her ear and fussing with her hood that had fallen back when she tilted her head for him. Someday, he was going to have to ask about the ear muffs, but for the moment he just deftly avoided them, careful not to knock them off. They were probably related to controlling her power, somehow, since he'd never seen her take them off before.

"I guess…"

Charmed, for what seemed like the millionth time since meeting her, he leaned in for a kiss, fully prepared to actually participate properly in this one when a palm reached out and smacked him in the face. For a moment he thought Gray had woken up and decided to step in but no, Gray was still out cold, his forehead pressed to the icy glass window and his breathing deep and even.

"Stop it. You're doing it. Again," Meredy complained. Peering through her fingers as best he could, Lyon could see she looked serious, although her cheeks were bright red.

Doing  _what?_

Comforting her? Trying to kiss her? Flirting with her? Thinking she was possibly one of the sexiest, smartest, sweetest women alive and right in front of him and wanting so badly to give into temptation? Giving into temptation? What?

Which one did she want him to stop exactly, and the better question was, why?

"Stop looking at me like that," she clarified, still sounding like she was complaining. She said it into his shoulder again, in what he realized was embarrassment, although carefully making sure the words were audible, if a little muffled. Her hand was still plastered to his face, and it was sweaty, making him crinkle his nose.

He noticed she hadn't moved from where she'd made herself at home half on his lap and against his shoulder. Nor had she pulled away from the hand and arm curled possessively around her waist, pulling her into him. What she was saying and what she was telling him was not matching up at all.

"I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Like… like… _that_. Uggh, like that." She told him plainly, frustration seeping into her tone, and threw up her hands dramatically, smacking his nose on accident. The words she wanted to say were escaping her. Lyon got the feeling that didn't happen very often, since she seemed to run her mouth without a filter quite often.

"Not enlightening when you describe it that way," Lyon remarked evenly, resisting the urge to rub his stinging nose. He couldn't resist arching an eyebrow though. "As I cannot see my face at the moment."

"Figure it out yourself, Smartypant!" she snapped, throwing her hands up again, losing her internal battle with her temper. She slid off his lap and dug a mirror out of her pack lying under the seat at her feet hastily and offered it to him. He stared at her as if she were joking. Surely she was joking? He wasn't going to sit in the dark on a train and analyze his facial expressions in the hopes he'd understand what she was referring to when he could be kissing her.

"I believe perhaps you are the one that is con-." Catching the murderous look, Lyon wisely decided to stop talking. As fun as it was to push buttons, he had a feeling she was teetering on the edge of an explosion. Teasing was only fun when both parties consented; otherwise, it was just cruel. Except for Gray. Gray was his brother and, therefore, an exception. It was practically natural law that Lyon had to tease Gray to the limits of the moron's endurance. Gray capacity for teasing was probably on par with his endurance in the bedroom; that is to say, it was pitiful.

"I  _am_  confused, and it's  _your_  fault! And right now, you're ticking me off!" she seethed, stumbling over her tongue while spitting the words out. He bit the inside of his cheek and tried not to smile at how cute she was throwing hissy fit because that was definitely the wrong thing to do right now. He wasn't interested in finding out how good her hand-to-hand combat skills were in that kind of way. Jellal surely mentored her in ways to defend herself without magic, which could also come in handy to fend off unwanted advances or smirking jerks.

Instead, he used his best puzzled, innocent voice, "I am still unenlightened…"

"Stop!" she snapped and crossed her arms, shooting him a venomous look. He stopped. He had no choice really. He'd never been commanded by a woman like that, other than Ur and his guildmaster, and he was too stunned to reply with anything other than silence. Sherry had never once raised her voice to him. Juvia, of course, had never protested so strenuously. Shelia occasionally threw a tantrum, but it was never directed at him specifically. This was a new experience, and Lyon couldn't quite decide if he liked it or not.

Appealing to her better nature was probably not the best approach right now. Time to rethink this conversation. And to make things black and white.

"Stop?" he replied coolly and raised an eyebrow, "What, pray tell, exactly, do you want me to stop doing? You must be more specific in your requests. Stop doing this?"

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. She scowled at him, huffing.

"No, not that."

"This?" A kiss on the tip of her nose and a hand rubbing her arm. Another scowl.

"No."

"This?" At this point he drew her fully into his lap, letting her know exactly what he thought of her at the moment. Settling in and somehow still pushing against him, she didn't protest when his next kiss landed on her lips. It was a gentlemanly sort of kiss, asking not demanding, not quite chaste but also not heated.

It was a question.

Meredy stared at him, holding the tension against his body, green eyes wide and fingers over her lips, and blurted out, "Stop confusing me!"

A smirked curled across his lips in response, "That sounds like a challenge."

"It's not a game, Lyon," she protested faintly as he shifted to a more comfortable position, pulling her flush against his chest. His fingers rubbed absently along her hips and sides impishly, playing over the cloth modestly, with just enough pressure to be felt.

He and his hands were obviously going to have to have a chat after this…

"I never said it was a game. But if you insist, we could make a wager… on if I can discover your little quirk on my own before this mission is over."

"And why should I do this bet? What's in it for me?" He knew he had her attention though, her eyes sparkling with mischief, even as she was frowning at him. The little minx was just being stubborn now.

He shrugged nonchalantly, "Make it a surprise. Anything  _reasonable_  and I'm willing to concede to it if I lose."

"And what do you win?"

"Your heart." This he whispered directly into her ear with a hot, delicate puff of air.

He didn't even see the lumpy, virus-infested train pillow coming.

"You're on, Lyon- _sama_ ," she huffed and threw herself at the sleeping Gray. Landing on him hard enough to make him grunt, she curled with her back to Lyon, grumbling, "I'm not a prize you know."

"But you are a treasure," he purred back, undeterred by her attitude.

She snorted and hunched her shoulders, groaning, "So cheesy!"

"So cynical," he retorted, lounging smugly, not at all put off by her act. Things were now black and white; the match had been set.


	11. Chapter Ten

 

Chapter Ten

 

The amount of cliché in this scenario was embarrassing as hell.

Gray stared across the ice igloo. Predictably, Juvia had her back to him, as far away as possible. Which, wasn't very far, to be honest. The whole point of creating an ice shelter was to conserve heat, so it was pretty snug. Sure, Gray could probably go streaking outside in the blizzard and be a little chilled but none the worse for wear. Just enough to be invigorated, really. But Juvia wasn't as immune to the cold as he was, and he could tell she was suffering, even out of the wind and chill.

"Juvia, at least take my shirt." He'd already given her his jacket, which she was kneeling on, and there was no way in hell she was getting his pants. The amount of awkward would increase to unbearable if she took his freakin' pants. The shirt wasn't much but maybe it would help a little until the shelter warmed up some more.

"No thank you. Juvia would not want to trouble Gray-san."

Uh, yeah, and she'd been saying his name like that. Still all polite and shit but he'd pretty much been demoted to some kind of warped friendzone type thing. If he was lucky. But Gajeel was her friend, and she didn't call him san, so he was probably ranked even lower than that. He was an acquaintance!

Gray shrugged off the shirt with ease and tossed it over anyway. It wasn't like he needed it. If she wanted to put her pride above losing some body parts to the cold, at least he offered to help her first. She snuck a glance at him out of the corner of her eye but when she saw him watching she turned back again quickly.

It was all Lyon's fault he was trapped in the most cliché situation in history. Somehow. Gray wasn't sure how it actually was his brother's fault, but he had to blame someone, and Mother Nature wasn't going to cut it. It all started when they reached town…

Groggily, the ice mage vaguely heard low voices murmuring to the right of him. His skull was bouncing lightly against the glass of the window in time to the train's motion – Gray always insisted on the window seat when he could get away with it—and his shoulder was jammed into the metal ridge painfully. Every time his jaw tapped against something solid, a jolt of pain went through him. Man, it was embarrassing his whole jaw was black and blue from the floor. But that wasn't his biggest problem.

Cracking an eye, he stifled a groan when he caught a flash of pink. It figured that she'd follow them. Well, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing though. This mission could definitely use a little more cheer, and given what he knew of her, it wasn't remotely a surprise she found a way to sneak along.

He was about to yawn and greet her when he became aware of what exactly was going on in the seat next to him. Lyon leaned in slowly and Gray flinched. That was not something he wanted to see right now. Lyon and Meredy getting it on in public on the seat next to him. Classy. Get a fuckin' room, guys. Beet red, he turned his head until his forehead was against the glass. Fuck, he could still see things in the reflection. He couldn't… Lyon and Meredy… in front of him… in public… oh fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. Brain broken. He was never going to get any of that out of his head. He wasn't even sure if he could face them at the train station.

Screwing his dark eyes shut, he tried to block it out.

Think happy thoughts, think happy thoughts.

His thoughts circled to Juvia.

To kissing Juvia and caressing Juvia and pulling Juvia into his lap.

To angry Juvia rejecting his kiss.

FUCK.

He said happy thoughts.

Well, he never really had unhappy thoughts about Juvia. Sure, sometimes, he was annoyed with her or creeped out by her stalking, and yeah, sometimes he just wanted to be left alone to be by himself, away from her and everyone else. But most of the time his thoughts about her were pretty positive. Recently, they'd been more than pretty positive. So he wasn't really unhappy per say. Right now he was mostly just really baffled and a little miffed.

At first he thought maybe he'd accidentally hurt her. But when Lucy first joined the guild, he'd thought she was pretty cute – well, actually, she is pretty cute, just not his style – and they had fun flirting a bit. She was a bit of a whiner, and he'd done some rougher things to her without any protest or squeaks. Juvia was definitely tougher than Lucy, so he didn't hurt her physically. On the flip side, she'd definitely done a number on him. The irony of the situation did not escape him; it couldn't when Lyon was pointing it out every chance he got. Then he wondered if he'd somehow frightened her or scared her by being so forward. But she was the one that came onto him all the time. A little physical or public affection wouldn't throw her off. She asked him to spank her for Mavis sake! Spank. Her. Which actually sounded kind of appealing in hindsight… Then he wondered if maybe she was trying to teach him a lesson. After all, he'd pretty much shot her down with rejection more times than he could count, because she wasn't getting the hint that he just wasn't that into her. Yeah, the rejection stung and it sucked, but he could deal, if he thought she meant it. But that wasn't it either. Besides, those kinds of get-you-back games weren't Juvia's style. If they were, he wouldn't be interested in her in the slightest. And he was pretty sure she didn't mean it.

Basically, he was stumped. The inner workings of Juvia's mind were a mystery to him.

Worse, he had no idea how to fix it. And it sucked.

What he did know was that now he was in the very awkward position of liking a girl who may not exactly reciprocate his feelings the way he expected her to. Very, very awkward. And Gray loathed awkward social interactions; he avoided them like the plague. This experience was not exactly making him happy he went out on a limb towards Juvia. It made him want to drawback into his safe little shell, away from her and away from his feelings.

And it was really embarrassing that Lyon had to sit between them like a mother between two squabbling toddlers. Not that Juvia had done anything violent or anything. If anything, she'd be uncharacteristically quiet and withdrawn, probably depressed. But definitely angry. There was no question she was angry and upset. And Gray certainly wasn't going to do anything violent or antagonistic towards her! But Lyon kind of buffered the bad vibes between them. Which was probably the Master's plan, all said and done. Get the kids out of the house and let them go destroy somewhere else not the guild hall. It wasn't like he hadn't done that to Natsu before, so Gray knew there was probably an ulterior motive other than 'go deliver this letter to Master Bob for me; it's important.' Gray felt like a kid that was sent on an errand to the office because he was too disruptive in class.

Stealing a glance at Juvia, he realized Lyon had taken the time to make her more comfortable. He was cross that he hadn't thought of it himself. Maybe that was why Juvia suddenly got cold feet. Gray was an inconsiderate bastard, and Lyon's presence tended to underline the fact.

It wasn't that he was trying to be a bastard; he just didn't think that way. That way meaning he didn't generally think about other people. Sometimes he felt like he had enough on his plate holding himself together, and taking on another person full-time would just tip the scale.

Frustrated, he let himself doze until they got to the train station. He woke up sweaty and hot and somehow missing his shirt. Even when he was unconscious he couldn't seem to keep his damn clothing on. He also became very aware that someone was smothering him like a living blanket, which explained the overheating to death part of the equation. Gray could now proudly say that he'd served as a living pillow slash ice pack for the train ride. It was probably the best accomplishment he'd had in the past few days to be honest.

"Meredy, you're roasting me," he groaned, shoving her off with his free elbow. She grunted and rolled back onto him, face plastered to his side. Her cloak flopped over both of them, making him even hotter. What was that thing made out of, the skins of artic beasts? "Not now Jellal… sleepin'."

"Ah, you're awake, Gray. Juvia has already disembarked to get the rest of our luggage from the platform, so I suggest we go and catch up with her. She didn't want to wait for you to wake up…" … you fucking monster, what did you do to my precious Juvia? Gray heard the accusation loud and clear.

Gray barely had time to catch the dufflebag that flew at his head. Carefully, he lowered it to his lap, uncomfortably twisted between the bag and the woman still snoozing against him. He poked her a few times with his finger. Not having much success, he traded glances with Lyon, who gave him an unhelpful shrug.

So it was like that, huh.

Guess things didn't go as smoothly as Lyon anticipated either.

The four of them trudged to the address listed on the envelope in silence. Meredy was glancing around and fiddling with her hood. Lyon was strolling with his hands behind his back, narrow eyes flickering around at the locals, refusing to look at or associate directly with them. Juvia had her hands in front of her and her head down, huddled close to Meredy, but occasionally Gray would catch her sneaking peeks at him. The girls were bundled up for the cold weather, but to Gray it merely felt brisk. There wasn't a lot of snow on the ground, so there was a sharp chill to the air, a dry cold that made things seem just a little bleaker. But he could tell a storm was rolling in.

Despite being an ice mage, Gray happened to like snow better. Ice was a good weapon; it was sharp and malleable and hard. It held edges and forms that made it ideal for fighting. But it was slippery and hard to handle and bitingly cold. Snow, snow was not that way. Snow was the softer sister to ice. He thought it was beautiful. He had fond memories of it as a child, having snowball fights with his fellow mages as children and teenagers. There were the days when he was cozied up in his apartment, content with his own company, just watching the snow fall for hours. There weren't many negative connotations or complications with snow for him.

"Bare Eden, huh?" Gray remarked to just say something. He shoved his hands in his pockets in a show of boredom to hide his unease. Normally silence didn't bother him much. It was a nice break from Lucy and Natsu and Happy. Their constant prattling usually got on his nerves. But this was ridiculous. "That's a strange name for a hot spring resort."

"Do bears visit the hot springs or something?" Meredy wondered, jumping at his opening. If the silence was bothering him, it was probably crushing her. "And why Eden? Are there bears in Eden?"

"Not bears, bare. Like, uh…"

"Like Gray's inability to be fully dressed in the proper setting," Lyon offered blandly, still watching the surrounding area. Even he seemed subdued; his insult lacking bite. "Still, it is a curious name. But that's no matter."

The first person Gray asked for directions blinked at him and then turned bright red, silently pointing the way. The second person broke into bawdy gaffs and slapped him on the back, saying good for you kids. The third person squeaked and ran away. Gray was beginning to wonder just what kind of crazy mission the old man had sent them on. When he realized the address was in the god damn woods he really decided Makarov was out to punish him.

Besides, at this rate, they wouldn't be able to return to the guild by the next day. He would be trapped with the asshole Lyon, an irate Juvia and a fidgety Meredy, who, by the way, was probably going to try to meddle and make things worse. He was waiting for the pink bracelet of doom to be slapped on his wrist at any minute, and then he would just die. He would fucking die, if Juvia realized what an inept moron he was, after he killed Meredy of course. If he was going down, so was she.

The four couldn't seem to find anyone willing to drive them out there either. Since dumbass Natsu wasn't with them, Gray had been looking forward to taking a load off for once. Karma clearly was still holding a grudge against him.

"We should probably stay in town," Meredy had a note of anxiety in her tone. She paced a little and rubbed her arms. But when Lyon offered her his jacket, she declined airily, shooting him down. He didn't seem particularly perturbed, giving a shrug of acknowledgment, but sometimes it was hard to tell what he was thinking by the way he looked. His I'm-plotting-to-punch-you-in-the-gut face and his well-that-sucks-but-okay face were pretty similar. Until he punched you in the gut. That was the best way to tell what Lyon was thinking in Gray's experience. The fucker had always been like that though. Gray caught Juvia watching their interaction closely. She was much easier to read with her brows furrowed and a frown on her lips. He flickered his eyes between the two and she gave him a tiny shrug in response, looking worried. It wasn't much but at least she looked at him and responding to his unspoken question. But she didn't seem to know what was up with them either he guessed. Meredy didn't seem to notice any of their interactions at all, glancing up at the gray sky, "Didn't that guy say a big storm was coming?"

Lyon was frowning, thinking hard. Gray just wanted to get this over with. If they stayed in town then there'd be another awkward day, at least, before he could get back to the safety of Fairy Tail. Erza and Lucy had to come back at some point, and maybe they could help him out. Or at least be a good distraction, if nothing else. Besides, he was confident that a little snow storm was no match for him. The resort couldn't be that far away, and he judged the storm to be at least an hour away. The chilly wind was just now starting to pick up and a smudge of dark clouds hung heavy on the horizon. Once they got to the resort and delivered the message, they would just bunk down until it blew over, and then they could get a ride back to town. It was pretty simple; there wasn't really any risk to it. Lyon was probably thinking the same thing. They'd weathered worse storms as children without much shelter as part of their sadistic training.

"Let's just do it," Gray grunted in exasperation. He ruffled his hair in aggravation and tugged on his jacket collar with three fingers. "The faster we do this shitty job, the faster we can get the hell outta here."

Lyon dithered a bit, probably weighing the pros and cons, before offering a compromise, "Isn't the message supposed to be rather urgent? Perhaps Gray and I should go deliver it while the ladies remain here in town."

Gray nodded. That made a lot of sense. What the hell was Gramps thinking… oh right, never mind. Gray really didn't want to know what Makarov thought of this shitshow.

"No way. You're not going to leave us behind like dead weight!" Meredy snapped, pointing her finger at the two guys. She'd look a little more intimidating if she didn't shiver after she said it though. She paced a little more, this time in annoyance, and looked to Juvia for help. Juvia looked torn between backing up her friend and staying in town verses completing the mission.

Staying the hell away from me, Gray corrected glumly, casting an unhappy glance her way. She wasn't looking at him and missed it. Which made him even more glum. And just acknowledging how much it sucked was like the cherry on top.

"Master Makarov asked Juvia to help complete this mission. Juvia will come as well."

And that… that was how Gray ended up in an ice shelter with Juvia in the middle of the woods during a blizzard. The higher powers that be just flat out hated him right now. Forget karma; it was all of them combined together in a coalition against Gray's sanity.

"Juvia hopes Lyon and Meredy are okay," Juvia said quietly, fidgeting with the hem of her dress, clutching and tugging the fabric. He almost didn't hear her, she was so inaudible.

Gray shrugged, unworried, but he wanted to reassure her, "They seemed to be way more than okay on the train, but Lyon must have been a jerk or something. But he'll take care of Meredy, I promise. Lyon's the kind of guy you can depend on. He probably did the same thing we did and holed up in a shelter."

It occurred to Gray then that he was pretty pleased they were fighting. Not him and Juvia—that sucked. But Lyon and Meredy. Because if they really wanted to warm up the shelter, Lyon and Meredy would jump at the excuse to do something he didn't even want to imagine. And that was just gross to think about. Eww… EWWW. His thoughts turned to the fact that, if anything, he should be in that kind of situation. Wasn't that the point of these stupid cliché things? The guy and girl are trapped together, they work things out and then they… well, yeah. But that seemed a little too optimistic in this sort of situation between him and Juvia.

"Juvia finds it odd that we were separated though. Juvia thought Meredy was just in front of her on the trail?"

Gray had found that kind of weird too. But once the whiteout hit, they could be literally a yard away and Gray wouldn't be able to see them. It wasn't like they were on good enough terms to be plotting at the moment anyway. It was probably just a fluke they disappeared the moment the storm hit, leaving him and Juvia alone together. A fluke, right. He just couldn't shake the feeling that Lyon was at the root of this fiasco. But, whatever. He had faith Lyon would keep both of them safe, and they'd just re-meet at the resort, no harm done… unless Juvia decided to take a couple of slices out of his hide, that was.

"It's fine," Gray reassured her again. There was no point in beating themselves up about it. Legs cramping from pulling them up to his chest to keep out of her way, he shifted uncomfortably. She showed no acknowledgement of his discomfort, still claiming the center of the shelter and shivering in a huddled mess.

They sat in silence for several more minutes. Every time Gray opened his mouth to say something, he chickened out and let the words die in his throat. He sucked at this sort of thing normally, and now it seemed a thousand times worse. Because they were trapped together. What if he said something that made her cry? She'd freeze to death in the ice pond she created. Plus, he hated it when she cried. He hated it when any girl cried, but Juvia was definitely the worst. It made him feel like the biggest bastard.

Biting his lip, he couldn't take the pressure anymore, and it blurted out before he could stop it, "Why're you so mad at me, Juvia? Did I do something wrong?" What did he just do? Why'd he have to go and say that so bluntly? Oh, look at this button – let me slam it with a mallet! Dread washed through him at the million things she could say back.

She hunched her shoulders, scooting away a little, not interested in talking about it with him. Somehow that was worse than what his imagination came up with. Her voice was distantly polite, "Gray-san is fine."

Scowling, he retorted hotly, "No, I'm not, obviously. You're mad at me!"

"Juvia is not mad at Gray-san." Her tone belied her words however. Juvia was certainly mad at Gray-san. Juvia was probably downright furious at Gray-san, but she was also doing her best to still be nice to him. Or at least answer him civilly.

"Sure." Rolling his eyes, he cut himself off. There was no need to be sarcastic and make it worse. If she could manage to be civil and polite, he could not be an asshole. Okay, he could trynot to be an asshole at least.

He sighed, realizing this wasn't going to get anywhere if he started yelling. Grabbing ahold of his temper and stuffing it way down, he sighed again. The sound sat heavy in the small shelter between them, voicing his exhaustion and frustration in a way he hadn't meant to do. She'd probably think he did it on purpose to emotionally blackmail her. Man, why'd he suck so much with his words? Why couldn't he just tell her everything was okay? That she didn't have to fight so hard every day for his attention? That she didn't have to worry about other women? That… that she'd won. She'd won him over, somehow. He was surrendering… throwing up his arms in defeat. Quite frankly, at this point, if she wanted him to bow down and kiss her feet, he'd do it. He'd do it in an instant, even in front of Natsu or Gajeel or anyone else. Even Lyon. He'd eat fucking crow for it too, because Lyon would inform him that he'd already been told that was how Juvia needed to be treated. Like a princess.

…but did she want to be treated like a princess? Sure, she wore some pretty dresses and she was a romantic, but Gray got the feeling Juvia wasn't really the princess type. There were too many mysteries about Juvia he really felt like they should be talking about.

She probably just wanted him to treat her nicely. And he couldn't even fucking do that right.

Another full body shiver went through her. She'd given in and put on his tee shirt, pride going down on its knees in the face of freezing and losing feeling in all body parts. Oh how well Gray knew that feeling. The shirt looked ridiculous over her puffy, fur lined jacket, but it was another layer to keep her warm. And Gray definitely liked the look of something of his covering her body. His eyes traced the outline, noting how it fit. If she didn't have on the jacket, it'd be way too big. He tended to wear loose shirts. Clothing was way too restrictive, so he bought a size up. It seemed counter intuitive to keeping his clothing on, but he'd tried buying tight clothing thinking that would make it harder to strip. It did make it harder to strip. And it also drove him absolutely batshit crazy feeling like he was walking around in girl's jeans and a straight jacket. Plus, he wanted children someday. He opted for comfort over decency. It wasn't like everyone hadn't already seen his goods already anyway.

Carefully, the ice mage shifted, wincing at the pins and needles sensation in his legs. He scooted across the icy floor, slowly and cautiously until he reached his companion. Settling down, he sat with his back to her, close enough that if he leaned back a little, they'd be pressed together, but giving her enough space to move away if she wanted to. Or needed to. Whichever one. Stretching out his abused legs, he rubbed his calf muscle, trying to get some feeling in them. His feet were crunched up against the shelter's walls, making a dent in the snow, as he wiggled his ankles around. He made sure not to press too hard though, in case the wall was thin enough his foot went through it. They did not need a hole in their shelter on top of everything else.

He felt her tense up at the contact when he accidentally brushed against her but he didn't pause in what he was doing. She'd been patient with him for three years. He could be patient for three fucking minutes. Or three hours. Or however long it took.

Yawning and stretching his lower back, he settled in against her, pressing their backs together. Even with the ridiculous layers, she still felt absurdly warm to him. She sat rigid, fists clenched in her lap, but didn't move away or say anything.

"Kind of reminds me of that one mission. Remember, that time we ended up locked in a broom closet together and Erza found us? And I'd lost all my clothing and you were in that dress for the mission? I thought she was going to kill me." He laughed at little. It wasn't really that funny, even in hindsight. It was a laugh that came from severe trauma. The red head had been fuming in a way he'd never seen before, even when she broke up Gray and Natsu's fights. Gray's life had literally flashed before his eyes when Erza's sword swung at him, and he may have pissed his pants a little… just a little! "She and Lucy should be back from their mission tomorrow. Maybe she'll beat up Lyon. That'd be awesome."

Juvia didn't reply immediately but he knew she was listening.

He yawned again, feeling content. He shouldn't be, he knew. He wasn't getting anywhere at all with Juvia and he was a royal fuck up of an asshole in general. But being trapped in an ice shelter, surrounded by his element and reminded of his childhood, made him sleepy. He, Lyon and Ur had spent a lot of time holed up together when the weather got too bad to train safely. Oh sure, Ur could probably have gone out any damn time she wanted to, but she seemed to realize the two stubborn little boys in her care would follow her out and turn into living snowchildren. The only thing that would make this better for him was a window.

Aside from that, he felt content around Juvia. Somehow, she'd slipped herself into his life as a constant he expected to be there. Like breathing or eating, she was just something that was there, something he needed to function. Even if she was furious with him, he still liked being around her. Provided she didn't try to Water Lock him. That shit wasn't fun.

"Juvia remembers," Juvia admitted quietly, startling him. She gave a small laugh of her own, sounding a little proud, "Juvia had to save Gray-san from Erza's wrath."

"Yeah, you saved me. Thanks. I don't think I said it before."

He ignored the squirming behind him. Juvia was probably taking that waaaaaaaaay out of context. Did he really never say thanks? He thought about it and realized he almost never said thanks. Not just with Juvia, but in general. What a douchebag way to be, he grunted to himself. It wouldn't kill him to say thanks some more. Especially to Juvia, since she was always doing nice things for him.

The silence was a little less frosty than it was before. She leaned back against him, either getting tired from sitting up or relaxing with the realization he wasn't going to move from his spot or try to do anything to her.

"I guess—I guess I'm a little stubborn." That elicited a snort-giggle from behind him bringing a smile to his lips. Well, since it was open-season on Gray-san, he figured he might as well throw it out there. She was already angry, so its not like he had that much to lose, right? "Juvia, you've always been my friend; I just want you to know that, okay? Always, always, since the Tower of Heaven, you've proved yourself to me, and to Fairy Tail, too. You're one of the people I'd trust with my life, and that's a pretty short list of people. So… so… aw fuck. Anyway, I've never said thanks, and I've never said sorry either… so I'm sorry. I don't think I need to say what for, but if you want, we've got some time for me to rattle it off…"

The water mage tensed up again with a little squeak, furiously shaking her head. Still, he didn't turn around even though he could feel her denial. Coward, that's what Lyon would say. And he was a coward. A selfish one at that. He was going to dump all this baggage on her when she couldn't run away and hope she'd forgive him. Honestly, he wasn't even sure what would come out of it. Other than the fact he was about to be the biggest fool on the planet, which was cringe-worthy in his mind. Mavis, it was like everything that came out of his mouth was the most moronic and idiotic things ever uttered, and it was mortifying. Especially in front of Juvia!

"Gray-sam-san," she stuttered in panic, her breath coming out in short huffs, "please, stop!"

"Sorry for that too but I can't. I don't know what the deal is but since you're not talking, I'm gonna do it. This shit's long overdue anyway," he said, his mind made up.

Gray had a bad habit of overanalyzing everything he said and did in relation to other people. He didn't do it all the time. Actually, he had few fucks to give about what strangers thought of him. But sometimes he'd remembered something he did or said to someone he actually cared about later and cringed and thought about how to not do it again. Usually it was an off-handed comment that made Mira cry because he was an insensitive jerk like that. But other times it was with Erza or Natsu or Lucy or Wendy. Sure, he put on a confident façade, an arrogant one really, but people couldn't tell the difference, so it was all cool to people who didn't know him well. He'd realized long ago as a child that human beings couldn't work out the difference between arrogance and competence and confidence worth shit. It was easy to fool them with the right attitude. If you asked someone to describe him, they'd say he was cocksure or full of himself. They wouldn't say, oh that Gray, he's a social pussy who stutters his way through life and waffles over every single sentence that comes out of his mouth. That pussy who spends too much thinking in his own head and not enough time actually socializing. Even though that's what he was.

Sure, he dithered over doing the right thing towards other people sometimes. Okay, a lot of the time, with his friends. But, on the flipside, once Gray committed to something, he committed. His follow through was pretty damn flawless. And he was unwaveringly loyal when it came to his friends. So he had to do this. He had to be straight with Juvia and bank on her kindness. Even if it didn't lead anywhere, he needed to clear the air and get things straight.

"Look, I'm going to put this out here first. I didn't respond to your advances before because I just wasn't into you that way. And Ur made sure I knew not to lead a girl on I wasn't serious about. I kind of just figured… you'd give up. And you didn't. Which made me feel awful and guilty, so I'm pretty sure I said some cruel things. I actually don't remember them though. And you still didn't give up.

"Juvia, that's amazing. I admire that sort of thing. Tenacity is not exactly something a lot of people have in spades. That's why I kept asking you to go on missions with me, or accepted your offer to do missions together. Because you make a really good partner. We work well together. And that Unison Raid… not going to lie, that was a rush. I've never felt anything like it; it was fucking perfect.

"Hell, I'm babbling now. Anyway, Juvia, if I freaked you out or made you uncomfortable, you have to tell me. I'm an idiot about social cues; you gotta know that by now. And I kind of… I kind of realized thatIlikeyou. But I also realized something else. I don't know anything about you… I mean, I didn't even know you kept aquariums in your dorm until the other day on our da- outing… and I… I want to know these things. I want to know everything about you." He scratched his nose, not sure if he was finished with his word vomit or if he could stomach another round of emotions. Just in case he hadn't said enough. He felt like he said too much, his whole body covered in sweat and tensed up. But there was nowhere to run and he certainly wasn't going to fight.

Gray was putting all his trust in the woman sitting behind him, which was an insanely hard thing to do, as it turns out. He clenched his fists in his lap and gritted his teeth, waiting for her answer.

And what an utterly lame ending. Really, Gray? You're a real fucking Romeo, you know that?

Juvia sniffled a little, still holding her silence. Gray wondered if he was going to be forgiven any time soon. Usually she'd be tripping over herself to take the blame and forgive him. Did he break her by blaming himself?

"Juvia doesn't want to fight anymore."

"Great because-."

"So please stop telling Juvia these cruel things," she cut him off, refusing to turn around, even though he'd craned his head to look at her. She hunched over, knees tucked against her chest and head down, her jacket collar pushed up hiding her expression. He could hear her voice crystal clear though.

"What—Juvia, I'm not fighting here. I'm trying to be honest. I don't think you're hearing what I'm sayin'."

"Gray-san is saying that Juvia is not good enough, and that's why Gray-san wasn't interested before. Because Juvia wasn't sexy or fun or beautiful enough. Gray-san will remember that soon," Juvia replied morosely, sounding vaguely like she might be turning into a soulless zombie, and Gray was suddenly afraid of what would happen if she had a meltdown in the middle of a blizzard. Catching his breath so he didn't panic – the worst thing ever to do in a blizzard—he restrained himself from fully turning around or touching her even more. The flimsy shelter wouldn't hold if she bolted, yet it seemed like a steel cage at the moment, they both desperately wanted to get out of but couldn't. "Juvia doesn't want to be cast aside and rejected."

Gray scratched his head, utterly perplexed. That wasn't what he was saying at all!

"It's not a personal attack… you're just fine the way you are! Stop trying to change for me. Just be yourself, alright?"

Juvia shook her head mutely, blue hair peeking out from under her hat, which she'd pulled down practically over her entire head at this point, trying to hide. Or keep warm. Well, maybe both, Gray didn't know. Juvia did some weird stuff sometimes.

He almost jumped to his feet but remembered at the last moment that'd put a hole in the ceiling. Instead, he pounded a fist into the ground in determination, slamming his knuckles and making her jump in surprise. He wanted to grab her, make her look at him, but he wasn't certain how she'd react to that. Natsu, hell, Natsu'd punch the fuck out of him or scream back. Lucy would yell. Erza… well, she'd probably just kill him. But Juvia? Part of her charm was the fact that she was utterly unpredictable sometimes. He didn't want her to scream in fear or anything. And being on the other end of physical anger wasn't all that appealing either. Or worse, she'd break down into a tsunami of sobs. So he settled to leaning in closer and pitching his voice directly in her ear, "Look, I have no idea what you're talking about. But I'm not going anywhere, got that? And I'll prove it to you. I don't know how, but I will, I promise."

His heart sunk a little when she didn't even acknowledge what he said. And she was still shivering, or maybe sobbing, he couldn't really tell. When he leaned in to check she rebuffed him with a few curt words, sharp and hateful. It was enough to make the ice mage settle back down with his back against hers, making sure she could feel him pressing against her steadily. Still, he placed his bare hands over her mittened ones subtly, as he leaned back against her, if only to anchor himself, willing himself to wait for the storm to end.

Which storm he didn't even know.


	12. Chapter Eleven

 

Chapter Eleven

 

 

"Don't you think that was kind of nasty? Ditching them, I mean."

Lyon considered the question for a moment. Was it mean? Probably. Was it necessary? Most likely. Did he regret it? Not in the slightest.

"Yes, it was incredibly cruel," Lyon replied with a shrug. "Gray is probably drowning in embarrassment at this moment in time."

"Hopefully not literally," Meredy remarked seriously.

He didn't point out that it was pretty much her entire plan to make them think that Meredy and Lyon were fighting then ditch them outside in the woods. If his dumbass brother couldn't even hit that easy pitch, they were all doomed.

The two of them sat in the lobby of the resort sipping warm beverages and waiting for their companions. The storm was dying down outside, and the residents of the resort were starting to shift about. Meredy was watching her tea with unwavering interest, tapping the sides and blowing on the ripples, while sinking down in her chair. Lyon was reclining comfortably in the chair next to her, bored of waiting. They had already delivered the letter to Master Bob; Lyon, having worked with him closely before several times, had no trouble spotting and approaching him. They'd even had time for a small, pleasant chat about his vacation and retirement. But that was what happened when they sprinted ahead, knowing the resort was a mere few yards away, Lyon having been in the front of their group and spotting it first. He knew they would beat it in, so he had to arrange for a little "nudge" to the storm to hinder Juvia and Gray while allowing for escape. It worked exceedingly well.

"You look awfully smug," she protested, casting a sideways glance at him that lingered a little longer than it normally would. He reached over and tugged on her ponytail, letting his fingers trail through her hair. He ignored her grumble and replied, "And you look awfully stunning. Although, I never imagined I would see you quite like… this."

"Hur hur hur," she fake laughed and rolled her eyes in annoyance, not amused in the slightest at his suggestive tone. Leaning forward, she shifted her body so he couldn't see quite so much. The motion made him purse his lips in disappointment, but he was patient; he could wait until she grew a little less self-conscious. "You're assuming you'd get that far."

"I know I'd get that far," he retorted without looking at her, continuing his bored gaze across the lobby. Satisfaction oozed from him as he continued, "And I look forward to going further."

Her entire face turned bright pink at his blunt proclamation, and she ducked down trying to pull up the hood she wasn't wearing. There was nowhere to hide here.

"What the fuck!"

Ah, better late than never.

"Juvia is so em…embarrassed!"

"Gramps is a total pervert, sending us here."

"Well, at least no one's going to yell at Gray about his clothes," Meredy giggled, watching the two mages' express their outrage at being smack in the middle of a nudist resort. "You'd think he'd be happy."

The staff tried to placate the upset Juvia, insisting that it was totally voluntary and she could stay dressed. Which just made her wail louder that then she'd be the only one dressed—Gray was predictably buck naked by then- and that was too awkward until Gray grabbed her elbow and yanked her away. Leaning forward, he said something in her ear, looking earnest. The water mage flushed brightly and jerked her arm away from him. Lyon watched Gray dither for half a second before stepping closer and repeating his attempt. Persistence rewarded, Juvia reluctantly nodded, giving an uncertain smile. The two went towards a changing room set discreetly to the side.

"They seem different. Maybe something did happen out there…"

His response was cut off as Juvia stepped out shyly clutching herself. Eyes riveted, he took in what he had wanted for so long and resigned himself to never having. Because everyone loves self-torture. Of course, he has seen her in a skimpy swimsuit; the world had seen her in a swimsuit on the lacrima vision during the Games. Lyon had a special sort of contempt for  _bikinis_ which that had practically been. Little strips of fabric that were paraded around, touting modesty and decency, while really just obscuring what was beautiful and natural under a false mask and sense of security. Bikinis made fabric the star, not the woman who wore it. Cheap ploys like that irritated him, especially ones that were bought and eaten up by the public. He could appreciate her much more this way.

"You think she's beautiful, don't you?" Curious. He detected no jealousy in her tone as he let his eyes rove over the woman of his dreams. Unsure if that was a compliment of trust or a slap of disinterest, he hummed in agreement, not quite ready to comment. Or take his eyes off Juvia, who was being coaxed by an unusually patient Gray into stepping out of the alcove. "Me too. Juvia's gorgeous. But I don't think she sees it."

"Jealous?" It popped out of his mouth before he even had time to register it. Regret filled its place, causing a sour taste. There was no reason to be like that. Not when it was he who was jealous about the situation before him. Trying to salvage his mistake, he teased, "Or are you into that kind of thing? I never knew."

"Lyon, be serious, will you? Women can think other women are beautiful. It's not all about sex, even if your little male reptile brain seems to think so."

Rebuked, he settled back thoughtfully. Warmth filled him as the words seeped in. How very true they were, although Lyon wasn't sure he could appreciate the 'beauty' of another male body.

"Sometimes your maturity surprises me."

The words hung between them for a long moment, tense and thick. Stealing a glance over at his companion, Lyon noted the frown. It was the kind of look someone had when they had been insulted but were too polite or reserved to correct the person in error. Somehow he'd mis-stepped here, assuming he was giving a compliment.

"Well, I do like to surprise people," she replied, slowly. Hesitantly, she rose to her feet, mindful of the lingering glance he gave her. He didn't let it linger too long, out of courtesy, though. "C'mon, let's go break the bad news."

"Oh, that we're snowed in for at least a few days?" Lyon snickered devilishly, "Or that the four of us have to share the same room?"

* * *

Lyon was enjoying a decently good book when he first noticed it. 'It' being Gray's embarrassing attempts to be romantic. Nothing could have shocked him more than seeing his brother carrying a bouquet of snowbells and holly – and just where had he gotten those exactly? He must have crawled through the woods and pawed them out from under the snow like an animal – nervously behind his back. 

Juvia had, mostly, gotten over the whole naked thing. Somewhat. Okay, not really. For being so forward in her requests and fantasies, she was surprisingly modest and opposed to the whole concept of the resort. But at least on the surface, with some encouragement from Meredy, who adapted to the whole thing rapidly, like it was the most natural thing in the world, she was fine with being without clothing. Well, technically, it  _was_  the most natural thing in the world, since clothing was an artificial creation made for human society and comfort.

Surprisingly, it was Gray who protested the most. Loudly and obnoxiously, of course. Aww, poor widdle baby wasn't special anymore…

Juvia gave the approaching mage a wary look. Her anger may have fizzled out, due to whatever was exchanged in tight quarters, but it was replaced with a distinct attempt to avoid Gray any time she possibly could. Desperately avoid him. Unfortunately, he seemed to know her better than she thought, because he persistently invited himself into her company no matter where in the spacious resort she hid herself. Meredy seemed to find the whole thing hilarious, tipping him off to where they were or excusing herself to the restroom when Gray approached leaving Juvia to face him alone.

Lyon was just shocked.

It was not shocking that Gray was a determined son of a bitch; no, that was standard. He expected that from his brother and fellow mage. Romantic motions were practically a foreign language to the oblivious ice mage, and Lyon really wanted to know where he was getting his painfully cliché ideas from of what he should be doing to woo Juvia. That's what was shocking to him. Inconceivably, the proud and dignified Gray, had been brought down to his knees in what must have been a humiliating hell. Prostrated, he was engaging in what he viewed as a pointless and moronic endeavor, all for Juvia.

It might have been inspiring under other circumstances.

Blushing and stuttering, he presented the flowers to Juvia. Hesitantly, she took them, looking more like she'd like to drop them and run. A second later she did drop them and run. A confused and angry snowbee fumbled out of the bouquet, probably quite bewildered to be warm and woken from its hibernation. The little creature, the size of a golfball, buzzed its transparent wings, wandering in a slow, wide circle. Then a faster, tighter circle. And then it was aloft, pissed to hell and out for vengeance against those who dared wake it before spring came.

Predictably, everyone in the area stampeded away, most of them knowing that snowbees were sluggish until angered. No one wanted to be on the wrong end of the stinger with a temper.

Gray yelled as he valiantly tried to round up the silver and black bee. He chased it, it chased him. At the end of it all, both dropped to the ground in exhaustion and a staff member deftly removed the bee with a cup.

Lyon didn't know whether to slam his face in exasperation or laugh himself sick. He settled for both.

* * *

The second attempt was a little more subtle. Lyon almost missed it.

Casting around the room, he was trying to find a lost item that Meredy insisted she simply must have to exist in this world. Of course, it wasn't important enough for her to stop her strategy game with Gray; she wanted to improve her game to beat Jellal apparently. Or important enough to explain what it actually did for her that was so vital. Or what it even was other than it 'held her hair out of her face.' But she had to have it, and could Lyon go get it, since he was headed back to the room anyway? Which he hadn't been.

Grumpy at the errand, he entered the room assigned to them, suspiciously enough under Makarov's name. He hadn't brought that particularly nasty fact up with Gray or Juvia lest they throw themselves back into the snowstorm. The old man really was sparing no expense to keep his guild hall pristine. Spacious, the room held two king sized bed. It was a given that the two girls shared one of the beds, whispering and giggling until all hours of the morning. Despite his keen ears, Lyon had yet to actually hear  _words_ ; he was beginning to believe after midnight they turned into gremlins and spoke some strange gibberish men could not comprehend. Gray and Lyon had decided to alternate who got to sleep in the bed and who was cast down to the floor. Lyon won the right to have the bed the first night, which he couldn't resist rubbing in by flopping down spread eagle and sleeping across every inch he could reach.

Fingers fumbling under the pillow, because dammit he'd looked everywhere else and it wasn't in the damn room, he pulled out a folded square of paper. It was slightly damp, like someone had been carrying it around in their sweaty palm for a while, and crinkled.

There were moments in time when being too catlike was a drawback in life. This was simply one of them. What had been seen could not be unseen so readily.

Crude like an elementary child had written it, a poem carved a jagged and dogged path across the paper. An elementary school student with a dictionary and a vague understanding how to use it.

J – junoesque

U- ultramarine

V- variform

I – idolatrous

A- awesome

It was clear when Gray had given up. He should have used simpler words. Lyon could create a masterful acrostic poem in his sleep. Joyful, unique, vivacious, idyllic, adorable. Memorable, energetic, rare, engaging, delightful… y… y was hard. Y made him think yellow. Yellow, yellow, yellow. Dammit, yellow had nothing to do with it but it was stuck in his head. Y-Y-yellow. Fuck. Yellowish? Yellowed? Y-Y-young. Yes, young, that was a better adjective than yellow. Young, younger, youthful? There was some kind of connection there that made him pause, stopping to think about it. Young didn't quite… fit.

Yummy, yes, yummy would do. Hardly the most eloquent adjective but very descriptive and fitting.

He almost took the paper and shredded it in the trashcan to save Juvia from murdered braincells. Replacing this disgrace with his own poem would be the kindest thing for both Gray and Juvia. His fingers wavered, waiting for the cue from his brain to rip up the paper into a million tiny, safe pieces.

He put it back.

After all, even if it was stupid, Gray clearly put a lot of effort into that piece of shit. It'd be a shame to shred it. Plus, Lyon was certain that Juvia could spot Gray's sloppy, child-like handwriting a mile away, as any self-respecting stalker could. He just wasn't dedicated enough to make a forgery. Meredy was probably wondering where her doo-hicky was. That was the moment Lyon found it… with his foot.

Hopping and swearing, he kicked the stupid thing under the bed. He liked her hair down anyway.

* * *

Meredy had decided to help Gray in his attempts to woo Juvia. It was only a matter of time.

Lyon could have predicted the catastrophe this would be. But he also found it fucking amusing as hell not only to see his brother squirm but the pink menace in action. Clever was one way to describe her. Sweet another. And yet the word that fit best was disaster.

Anyone with half a brain or less blind enthusiasm realized that there were two things wrong with her plan. One, Gray was oblivious and indifferent to pop music, so of course he wouldn't know the lyrics, tune or song. Two, Gray sounded like a dying animal. Not just any dying animal, but an animal that'd been disemboweled and eviscerated and retarded at birth.

Yet again, Lyon was impressed with Gray's fortitude, as painful as it was to admit.

Stage presence was not something Gray possessed. At least not in this case. He hunched over, clutching his microphone like a lifeline, and stared at Juvia the entire time with a look of utter horror, eyes begging her to end his misery. Amazingly, it was Juvia who broke first, not Gray, when she promptly melted into a puddle of sheer embarrassment, dripping out of her seat onto the floor and flowing out the door.

His choice of songs was rather regrettable too. Lyon could tell the moment the acoustics started up that this was not the right song for the occasion. Actually, he wasn't sure what sort of occasion this song was right for, talking about possessing someone's heart. Maybe a voodoo cult ritual. It was like someone needed to call in an exorcist or something. Pointing out the utter inappropriateness of the chorus line, possessing of the heart of course, was the fact that the song was almost deadpan. There was no passion to it at all. Gray might as well have chosen a rap to confession is undying love; at least then it would have been catchy.

Meredy finally leapt to the rescue by cutting him off and shoving him off stage before the mob could get to him. It didn't hurt that she chose a very  _energetic_  and  _bouncy_  song to perform next. Someone was certainly walking on sunshine, and yummy was definitely involved.

Lyon decided at that moment that he simply loved nudist karaoke.

* * *

Juvia was, understandably, starting to freak out.

Gray had been following her around literally all day so that he could run ahead and open doors for her and pull out chair and open her pop cans.

He also took every opportunity to compliment her, her body, her personality, her ability to eat food with a fork and the air she breathed. Lyon wondered if he looked that way when he said it; hopefully not. Sparkles were one thing; a look of desperation was another. It wasn't a good look.

Besides that, he also lavished her with touches. Touches here, touches there, touches in naughty places – those generally being followed up by a compliment—platonic touches and basically anywhere he could reach skin before she wiggled away.

Juvia had taken to barricading herself in the lady's room, where Gray simply patiently waited outside.

* * *

Frankly, this was becoming annoying. It had been amusing at first but at some point crossed the line.

Predictably, the activity had been innocent at the start. Make snowmen outside with the girls in the fresh snow. Inside the resort was getting kind of stuffy and the staff kind of edgy. So far nothing had been destroyed and no one harassed, yet it was prudent to give the other guests a break from Gray's repeated failed attempts to convince Juvia to look at him. Also, Gray had been giving a restraining order that required him to stay 20 yards away from every public restroom in the resort.

Surely the water mage would tire of watching him go through this grueling gauntlet soon? Lyon had no idea what she had even said to bring on this reign of romantic terror, but he was tired of it.

Even Lyon was beginning to feel sorry for his brother. Or he had been… until now. Now he was vexed. Why couldn't Gray just admit defeat? It was obvious to anyone with eyes that his ice magic wasn't up to snuff against Lyon's.

Now the two were locked in an ice make war of epic proportions, neither one ready to give up or admit defeat. Frankly, between the two of them, they had probably recreated the entire land of Fiore's famous landmarks, their guild marks, imaginary castles, folk tales, all sorts of plants and animals and imaginary beasts… Lyon was running out of ideas and panting with exhaustion.

The girls had long since abandoned them to their own devices, saying it was too cold out to continue watching them fight pointlessly. Clearly, they simply did not understand how vitally important this was that Lyon win and rub Gray's fucking nose in it. But they watched from the second floor, inside the building, warm and gossiping, clutching hot beverages and laughing.

"Juvia, look!"

Lyon promptly lost control of his current masterpiece, letting the ice crash to the ground with a horrific crunch that matched how he felt inside.

At least it wasn't a giant phallic symbol but…

In bold, solid, shiny, icy letters, Gray had created a giant heart with swirls and sparkles. In the center of it was a replica of him and a replica of her and the words Fairy Tail forever. There was some kind of stupid inscription about ice and water being the perfect complimentary pairing. It hurt Lyon's pride as a man that Gray even thought of such a thing.

Juvia never even got a chance to see it, since Lyon really didn't want her joining the water cycle to go ask Ur were she went wrong in life that Gray had stooped to this level.

That monstrosity had to be destroyed immediately.

Lyon had no idea Gray could even punch that hard. Bastard. He should be thanking him.

* * *

Gray had taken to leaving cute little notes around the room for Juvia to find. Or rather, things he thought were cute. Like his poetry, the notes needed a little work. But, in a blunt and direct way, they could be kind of charming. To a chimp.

Lyon was not amused.

Meredy was.

Juvia seemed oblivious. But was probably secretly delighted.

Lyon wished he were a fire mage.

Meredy started imitating Gray, leaving notes for  _him_ to find.

Lyon couldn't always tell the difference.

This bothered him. He could be keeping love notes from his brother in his pocket.

He vowed to destroy every single one he found, just in case.

Meredy found out.

Lyon kept every note he found from then on. Just in case.

* * *

If there was one thing in life Lyon had no idea about, it was the fact that, apparently, Gray had an irrational phobia of horror movies.

Social norms dictated that even if the girl wasn't scared, horror movies were a great excuse to get clingy. Meredy seemed to grasp this new concept exceedingly well, although Lyon could tell she found the movie funny. Yet in Gray's warped world, he was the one who was scared shitless, clinging to Juvia while yelping, squeaking, whimpering and hiding his eyes. And since Juvia had opted for a blanket, he was also trying to crawl under it, pawing all over her, which was making her flush bright red and shake.

About the time he climbed into Juvia's lap, her nerve broke. Or her libido. With a suspicious-sounding gasp, she left them, promising breathlessly to return in a few minutes. And by a few minutes, she meant the whole rest of the movie. Which Gray spent clutching Lyon's arm and burying his face in Lyon's shoulder dramatically every thirty seconds.

Even the cheesiest, fakest parts brought the hardened ice mage to tears of terror.

At some point, Meredy had moved across Lyon's lap and taken Gray in, swaddling him in Juvia's abandoned blanket gently. She patted his head with an open palm and informed him it wasn't  _real_. Petting his hair, she rolled her eyes at Lyon's glare. When he persisted, convinced Gray was faking it for attention, a lovely pink ring encircled his wrist.

Abruptly, both Gray  _and_  Lyon were clutching Meredy, trapping her arm and leaving her unable to turn the fucking movie off. The three of them were stuck like that until Juvia meekly crept back into the room and flipped on the lights after the credits started rolling.

* * *

"I'm such a failure," Gray sighed, running his hands through his hair and fiddling with his necklace. "Damn, how'd Juvia do that all day, every day? I'm fucking exhausted. And she still found time to bake things… maybe I should make her something. Chocolates are romantic, right?"

Pity was not normally an emotion Lyon associated with Gray. Rage, yes. Jealousy, yes. Affection, sometimes. Exasperation, always. Familial love, certainly. Pity, no, never. But he pitied the poor guy now. 

"Well, chocolates could be romantic, but I believe your track record in the kitchen indicates otherwise."

Gray sighed again, not even rising to the bait.

"Well, I tried, I guess. I just… I just wanted to prove to Juvia I'm serious. I'm not going to magically change my mind or disappear. You know what she said to me? That I was fucking around and lying. Okay, not in those words, but that's what she meant. I've never lied to her, ever. I'm not a liar! She should know that."

Lyon leaned back against the dry sauna wall. Rarely did he seek or appreciate heat but after the stress this mission has brought on, he welcomed the chance to relax his muscles. Gray followed him in, probably thinking the same thing, and slumped over the bench in defeat.

"It won't mean much to you," Lyon began, immediately questioning his sanity, "but I, for one, have been impressed by your ability to not only make an utter jackass out of yourself but your endurance in the endeavor. Dear brother, you have gained my everlasting respect in your quest for Juvia's heart. I give my seal of approval that you may be good enough for my Juvia."

"Thanks, I guess. You're right; I didn't want to hear that from you. And what's this my Juvia business?" Gray grumped back, looking slightly less mopey.

They sat in silence for a few more moments before Gray added, "Sorry about the Sensory Link… that was kind of… uh… personal. You didn't need to feel that shit. Never really watched movies before… guess I just didn't realize… yeah, no more horror movies. Ever."

"I had no idea either… no, it is best left in the past. And it was Meredy's fault anyway for linking us."

"Yeah, that's a bitch of a power. Good luck, man. With Meredy, I mean. At least one of us is getting somewhere," Gray muttered, eyes blinking slowly and body relaxing. He was falling asleep where he sat. Lyon realized he had probably been using his nighttime hours to plot and execute his calamitous plans to ruin romance for good. "Dunno what you're going to do when Jellal comes back though. He thinks she's like, twelve, or something. It really bothers her too. I guess she's always been that kid in the corner, the don't talk cuz kids should be seen and not heard kind. She hates being treated like a kid or being told she's childish. Hates… it…"

Just for the lightbulb that clicked in Lyon's head, he made sure when he carried Gray back to the room that Gray's skull didn't bounce along the floor.

What he wasn't expecting was Juvia to be in the room already, without Meredy. She was curled up on the bed, under the covers, taking a nap. Without much thought, Lyon chucked Gray at the bed and walked out.

What's the worst that could happen?

* * *

It wasn't too hard to find Meredy. Over the past two days she'd developed a love for the arcade and game room. One would almost call it an obsession. It even gave Juvia and Gray a break from her haras—helping because all of them had stopped playing board games and card games with her out of self-preservation. While she wasn't the most strategic player, she was certainly a passionate one. At that point she turned to video games to amuse herself.

Sidling up behind her, he leaned over her shoulder to watch her play whatever game she was in the middle of. Jerking her hands up, the screen exploded and game over flashed up over and over.

"Lyon! You killed me!"

Apologetically, he stepped back and rubbed her shoulders.

"Sorry," he replied awkwardly, suddenly nervous.

She leaned back against his hands, staring at him curiously upside down. Unconsciously, awkwardly remembering the last time she did that, he pushed his thumbs in small circles across her skin, trying to get ahold of himself. His toes curled and uncurled in time with the circles, antsy and excited, his heart beating in his ears.

"What's wrong?"

"Your heart."

She stared at him with both eyebrows raised quizzically, "Excuse me?"

He cleared his throat, because somehow his treacherous heart had gotten stuck in it, and clarified confidently, "Your heart, I've come to collect it."

"Are you… are you asking me out, Lyon?"

Face heating up, he took one hand away from her to rub the back of his own neck. When she put it so bluntly, it kind of took all the magic out of it.

"Yes, I'm asking you out… I believe it could be termed that way," he replied earnestly.

"Oh."

Oh. Oh?  _Oh_?

She blinked a few times, still leaning back against him, not saying anything else. Gritting his teeth and trying to relax his fingers, which he could feel were digging into her, he realized he'd probably been reading this situation all wrong. Here he was, laughing at Gray, when at least Gray knew Juvia liked him. Loved him, probably, under the thick veneer of adoration. He was doing what he was doing secure in the knowledge that if he was persistent enough, Juvia would have to respond. She'd already been close to breaking several times, although Gray didn't seem to notice or realize it. Lyon, on the other hand, just assumed there was something there because… because what?

She teased him?

She teased Gray too, so what. And Natsu and Gajeel. And probably Jellal as well.

She flirted with him?

She probably flirted with lots of other people.

She found him sexy?

She admitted that she found lots of people good looking or beautiful.

She kissed him?

She'd probably kissed dozens of guys.

He'd been such a fool. Again. But it hurt less with Juvia because at least he'd known her heart had been taken from the start.

"Lyon, wait."

He didn't wait. Even if it looked like some kind of dramatic movie moment, Lyon fled, whirling on his heel and stalking out hastily. He didn't deal well with disappointment or with losing. There was no reason to create a huge fuss by letting the whole resort know about his pain. Long strides carried him straight out the door. The storm was long over, sun hitting the white, pristine snow perfectly. They should be able to leave this afternoon and be back in Magnolia early the next morning according to the staff member at the front. He'd seemed quite eager they leave, actually, promising Lyon the first four seats on the bus back to town and the train station.

Suitably far away, he settled into a stance and took a deep breath to clear his mind, closing his eyes and focusing inward. Slowly, precisely, he went through the movements that were as natural to him as breathing. Each movement shifted his magic sensually over him, harmonizing, cajoling, encouraging it to follow his will. Peace washed over him, centering him, and a thin sheen of sweat covered his body despite the frozen air as he finished the last rotation. It was rare he got to practice in his element. There was a charge to the practice, a slight buzz of rightness, he failed to achieve when practicing at Lamia Scale. While he loved his current home, it could never replace the home of his childhood.

"That was beautiful."

He had heard her come up long before but hadn't stopped or paid her any attention. His attention was drawn to the product of his mediation exercise. An ice castle lay in ruins, wall shattered and windows empty. A broken throne dominated the main room, with an abandoned crown lying beside it. Desolated, empty and taciturn, it looked nothing like the cheery, beautiful, ornate castle that Gray and Juvia created together.

Well. Fuck. Story of his life.

Lyon stopped examining it for a brief moment, just in case something had changed, and wiped the entire thing away with the wave of his hand in disgust. The ice crystals swirled, settling on the snow, erased. It was always the same. Ever since Ur's death, it had been the same. One didn't have to be fluent in psychology to recognize the symbolism. Whatever high he got from the activity, the result always brought him crashing down. But he was no longer upset. And that had been the point.

Gray yelled and punched people; Lyon meditated. Amazing what seven years could do. Seven years could provide more maturity than he had ever imagined possible. After all, he let Juvia go simply because she deserved what she wanted. Placing his trust in Gray was nearly impossible, but he did it, losing her willingly. He wasn't going to force his way into people's hearts anymore.

"Ice is very beautiful," Lyon agreed calmly.

"You know what I mean, Lyon."

"Do I?"

Okay, that came out a little more archly than he intended.

"I landed on my butt, you know. In front of a whole room of people. That Master Bob guy had to help me to my feet; I was so mortified."

"And you rushed after the man who did that to you? Classy." The dig slipped out of his mouth before he could stop it. She winced a little.

He noted that she at least had the good sense to put on some clothing before following him out. It was her standard outfit, complete with cloak. She fidgeted with the front breast lapel, turning the fabric over and over in her fingers. Faintly, he could hear a soft crinkling and crunching. Hesitantly, her fingers travelled into the cloak and pulled out a small square of paper. Several, in fact, each one wrapped up carefully. But one particular piece stood out, catching his eye immediately.

The regret was real.

"Couldn't you think of something better than  _yummy_?" Meredy rolled her eyes and put the treasured papers back in her hidden pocket carefully. Her eyes lingered on the snow, his feet, the trees, the hem of her cloak.

"You try to find a better adjective for y," he challenged, folding his arm across his chest and drawing himself up with a puff of arrogance. It was probably the only thing keeping him from running across Fiore naked rather then having this conversation, after his humiliating rejection, about a horrible love poem he made for her.

"Hmm," she took a step towards him, eyes still on the ground. "L… L is tricky. There are lots of good words for L." She took another step, slowly bringing her eyes up his body, "Loyal." Another step, a higher gaze. "Lovable." She paused, finger to her lips, eyes lingering just shy of his, "Lively. Lighthearted. Likeable." An eyebrow wiggle, "Limber."

"Wouldn't you like to know," Lyon murmured, rooted to the spot, masking his anger with a taunt.

"Lucky," she finished with a grin, taking a big hop. "Lucky fits."

He opened his mouth to argue but she cut him off.

"O. Let's see about O, shall we? Opinionated comes to mind. Or ostentatious." He scowled, not liking the character assassination in the slightest. "Open. Orderly. Outgoing."

"Or old. There's always old," she punctured that statement by looking him up and down, gaze burning. "No, I think we can skip that one."

"Meredy…"

Sneakily, she'd shifted closer to him while he was distracted by her judging stare. Now she was within leaping distance. Loosely, he shifted his center of balance, just in the case.

Now was the time that he should just walk away. Right now. Walk away.

"N… Narcissistic."

Lyon stared at her blankly, not that he was going to argue the point, but that wasn't flattering in the slightest. She made a face, thinking hard, clearly losing her momentum, biting her bottom lip. Impishly, she gave him a cheeky forgive-me smile, and sidled in closer. "Uh… neat?"

His eyes tracked her moments carefully. He wouldn't be distracted again, no matter what came out of her mouth.

" _Naughty_."

The word wasn't even fully out of her mouth when she pounced with a full-body tackle. Prepared, but caught off guard, the two of them went down into the deep snow in a heap. She laughed, pushing herself off of him, clearly quite pleased with herself, like a big game hunter who bagged a snow cat.

"Naughty, hmmm?"

Grabbing her, he pulled her back down into the snow and stuffed a generous handful of it down the back of her dress. She shrieked for mercy, thrashing and giggling dramatically as he ensured she knew the true definition of naughty before collapsing in a heap on top of him. Hauling herself up, she curled into a content ball on his lap, head against his bare chest, red-faced and breathless and shivering. Putting his arms around her, he hid a smirk in her hair, unable to resist the proximity of the moment.

What a sucker.

"Y…" she continued once she got enough breath back to talk, mumbling into him. "Y-Y-Y… Yellow? Yellow, yellow doesn't even make any sense. Y-yel- really? Fine then, yummy it is." He chuckled indulgently until he realized she was licking him. Before he could comment, she dragged her tongue across his skin again, teasingly, making him shiver inadvertently, "You're yummy. Like a snowcone."

"That doesn't even make sense."

"You don't make sense."

Dignifying that retort with a response was probably going to get him nowhere. And get him licked again. If there was any licking to be done, there was a proper place and time for it; out in the woods half naked (fully naked on his part; clothed on hers) was not the proper time.

"Yes."

Lyon sluggishly dragged his brain to the one syllable word. Yes what?

"Yes, I'll go out with you – or I guess whatever it is we do. I don't think dating will work that well. Gray said you wanted a fling, but that won't work either. I don't do flings. I don't even have an address, so that's kind of a problem, but we can work around that. I guess it wouldn't even have a name, but yes, we can do it."

Lyon growled. He took back every pitying, generous, nice or pleasant thought he'd ever had about that asshole. Fling indeed.

He tilted her chin up, finally feeling like he had full permission. Covering her lips, he poured all the pent-up passion into the kiss leaving nothing gentlemanly about it. She kissed back, nothing child-like about it. He pulled away to gaze adoringly at the woman before him.

"Does love need a specific name?"

"Lyon!"

This time he saw the snowball aiming for his face but let it hit him anyway with an unrepentant smirk.


	13. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

 

 

Whatever he was lying on, it was much too soft and comfortable to be the floor or outside, both places he routinely managed to sleep on. Opening eyes lazily, he yawned, and stretched. And promptly smacked something warm and squishy that squeaked in protest and surprise. Bolting up, he turned towards the source of the noise and discovered two blue eyes peering at him from behind the sheets with eight fingers curled over the top. She looked like a child who was afraid of the boogey man, hiding under the sheets like that.

 

"Oh, hi Juvia."

 

He yawned again before it actually hit him. He was in bed… with Juvia. Naked. Granted, that wasn't a weird thing for him, since he almost always slept in the nude except when Team Natsu complained and made him wear boxers. But he generally didn't wake up with Juvia next to him. Or anyone else for that matter.

 

Startled, he yelped, "Juvia! What are you doing?"

 

"What is Gray-sam-san doing? Juvia was taking a nap in her bed…" she squeaked again, sounding just as surprised as he was, from under the sheets and ducked her head a little lower.

 

Gray blinked a few times and realized he was actually on her bed not the other way around. And he had no idea how he even got there in the first place. Scratching his head, he considered it, puzzled, before deciding it wasn't worth the effort. Muzzy from sleep, he moved on to the next item in his brain: However he got here, this was kind of a problem. At least he knew there wasn't any alcohol involved, so he could take that off the list safely. And he seemed to be in one piece, so Juvia probably just woke up too.

 

Sitting up slowly, not to jostle her around the bed, Gray moved to get off and give her some space. He had pretty much given up on the whole wooing thing. Everything he tried went disastrously wrong; he had to admit that romance was just not his forte. He also really hated Cana's predictions, picturing her smirking face saying those words that he'd be romantically inclined and it wouldn't be smooth. This was something he'd never, ever live down once she heard about it – he was going to have to silence all involved. He thought the notes were actually moderately successful, until he found Lyon swiping them; that bastard. But everything else was just pathetic. Of course, that didn't mean he was giving up all together. If Lyon could be persistent and Juvia could chase after him for so long, he could do it too. He just needed to keep trying different ways, just like in battle. Just because his preferred style was to rush in, fists flying, Gray knew the value of withdrawing and assessing the situation when things weren't working out in his favor.

 

"Sorry, sorry, I don't know what happened. I didn't mean to smack you in the face. I mean, if you were Natsu, I wouldn't even apologize, but I really did it on accident. I didn't even realize I was on your bed! I mean, yeah, your bed, sorry," he blathered, wondering why the bed was so damn big. Struggling to get to the edge of it was taking way too long. He and Lyon probably could've shared without touching… huh. Well, too late now. "Last thing I remember was talking to Lyon in the saun—that bastard. Juvia, I'm so sorry; I think Lyon's been talking to Cana or something."

 

Juvia sat up slowly, drawing the sheets around her like a shield, worried eyes watching him carefully. Her fingers were still curled around the top in a death grip, hiding her face behind the sheets so he could only see her eyes and the top of her head. Her hair was mussed up from the pillow, sticking out at odd angles, and her eyes still had a trace of sleep but looked too anxious considering it was just a tiny little mess up. It wasn't like they'd  _done_  anything… right?  _Right?_

 

"And what did Cana say?"

 

"That I should just bang you and get it over with," Gray replied without really thinking about it.

 

Shocked and horrified, he clapped his hands over his mouth with a loud smack. Pain rippled through his jaw at the impact but he was too busy hoping a sinkhole would open up beneath him to notice.  _Why_ , why did he have absolutely no filter when he woke up? Taking stock of her expression, he paused in his struggle with the endless bed, heart and breath both frozen in his chest, dread settling at the core of his being. Gathering his scrambled wits, he tried to fix it, "Juvia, I would never do that."

 

"Gray-sama doesn't think I'm—." She didn't even finish whatever horrifyingly embarrassing thing she was going to say before pulling the sheets over her face and head. Considering some of the things she said and did in public, in private she was unexpectedly bashful. She was so dismayed that she even used his normal honorific. His heart did a joyful jump, smashing into his ribcage, at the familiar title, and he tried to rub his chest discreetly, thankful she was under the sheets and not watching him.

 

Reluctantly, he crawled back over. Judging by the sheets, she'd curled into a little ball.

 

"Juvia, that's not it. I'm saying I respect you too much to take advantage of you like that. It's a  _compliment_  because you're special to me. Look, I feel like we're just having the same conversation again. I don't want to have this conversation over and over again, Juvia."

 

Tentatively, he gave the lump a gentle nudge. The sheets rustled as she drew in tighter away from his touch. The next nudge was a little harder. Predictably, he got the same response. Well, she was asking for it. They were going to at least going to get this settled before the two meddlers returned from where ever they were. He wasn't going to put up with this. Even if she didn't want to acknowledge his feelings, she couldn't just act like this. Aside from the fact that it was pretty damn painful for him to watch, and to experience, he really worried she was hurting herself in a deep way. If he thought she was being genuine, he could let it go. It'd hurt like a bitch, but he could do it. But she seemed so… scared? Maybe he couldn't fix it but he was going to try.

 

"Can you come out? Please?"

 

A muffled no.

 

"If you don't come out, I'm coming in," he warned lowly and added seriously, "And I have cold feet."

 

He felt her fortify her position.

 

"GRAY-SAMA!"

 

Wiggling and strong-arming his way under the sheets, he came face to face with a wide-eyed, panicked Juvia. She was watching him, anxiety showing in the whites of her eyes. Forcing himself to keep eye contact, he cautiously grabbed both wrists so she couldn't turn or run away.

 

"Juvia, relax, I'm not going to hurt you."

 

"Juvia hurt Gray-sama though," She mumbled, turning her head miserably. Her knees were still drawn up against her and her head bowed into the pillow. "Gray-sama has been so kind and sweet, and Juvia can't… Juvia just can't! Please leave Juvia alone."

 

Gray reached forward to pet her hair, letting go of her wrists, vaguely remembering times when he'd be comforted the same way. She jerked away sharply and he drew back his hand. Bringing his hands back to his chest, he waited in silence, watching her helplessly. Fists clenched, he forced himself to be still and patient even though every part of him was burning with nerves and the desire for flight or fight. This was exactly the kind of confrontation he wanted to avoid at all costs; the kind that made him feel weak and useless to help his loved ones.

 

"I'm not worried about that. It's okay."

 

"It's not okay! Juvia is worried about Gray-sama's heart!" she retorted disconsolately and curled up tighter again, pulling her hands and arms over her head. "Juvia worries often about Gray-sama."

 

"Look, I'm really happy you worry about me, but you need to worry about yourself some more, okay? Seriously, I feel like we've talked about this before."

 

Slowly, an idea came to him. Juvia wasn't really the type to take a lot of stock in words. He was going about this all wrong. She wasn't going to take his word for it not because she didn't trust it but because she didn't really see how important they were. Words were words to her; she just said them, sometimes without thinking about them. He was going to have to find a way to communicate by  _showing_. Actions were going to make a bigger impact than saying the same thing over and over again.  _That's_  what Cana was implying; that sneaky little shit. She wasn't saying have sex; she was saying take action. Well, in Cana's mind they were probably the same thing, but Gray shouldn't have been such a fucking moron. He spoke Cana-speak enough to know what she meant, if he hadn't been so distracted by the literal translation with his hormone-laced mind.

 

Taking a moment to collect his thoughts and let Juvia calm down, he took a deep breath. Either this would go over really well or he would be so fucked. Slowly, he built up a ball of ice in his palm; it was dense and heavy, completely white, not clear. It was hard to pack it in that compactly but he didn't want it to be transparent at all.

 

"Juvia, come with me."

 

"Gray-sama?"

 

"To the bathroom, come with me." He repeated impatiently realizing just how heavy the ice ball actually was while it sat in his hand. He was not going to do this in the middle of the bed. It would be hard enough to explain as it was to Lyon why the bathroom was the site of a battle of the heart. Then again, knowing that doofus asshat, he'd probably find the whole thing amazingly glorious. "Bring the sheets if you want. Or there are some towels in there, I'm sure."

 

Even though she staunchly insisted that she was perfectly comfortable without clothing, Gray could tell otherwise. She was putting on a happy, cheerful mask to hide her insecurities in front of them, but he could tell she was very uncomfortable with being bare, especially alone in the room with just him. Whenever they were in the room together, Gray and Lyon made an effort to wear boxers and the girls always seemed to have something on. Obviously, they couldn't do that in the resort; that's how Gray knew Juvia was uncomfortable. Because he'd spent the last two days observing her like a stalker. It made sense; out of all the ladies at Fairy Tail, her dress was always the most conservative. Ironic that she fell in love with him, considering his utter lack of clothing half the time.

 

"Juvia," he said, part command and part warning, knowing that she wouldn't resist but still trying to give her the option, so she didn't feel boxed in. He didn't really want to manhandle her but he also didn't want to get the bed wet either. Meredy would have an utter fit about damp sheets. And then both he and Lyon would end up sleeping on the floor.

 

Without waiting to see if she responded, he flipped the sheets off of him and carried the sphere to the bathroom. A few minutes later, he heard a soft patter of bare feet on the tile. He'd found a towel in the meantime and wrapped it around his waist. He wanted them to be on even footing.

 

She hovered in the doorway, shy and uncertain. Knuckles crammed up to her lips and her toe drawing circled on the ground, she peered at him from beneath her lashes. Her other hand held up the sheets, drawing them up around her collar bone but leaving her legs visible.

 

He beckoned her over, his heart thumping nervously and his hands shaking a little. Seeing her so vulnerable made him realize how vulnerable he was at the moment. It slithered up his gut and strangled his insides making his own toes curl and his fingers clench into fists. This weird, awkward feeling he had in regards to Juvia; it was really novel and very unsettling. Gulping down the lump in his throat, repeatedly, he made the motion again, not trusting himself to speak or watch her too closely.

 

She skittered over, seating herself gingerly on the edge of the very large and luxurious bathtub that dominated the entire room, giving him a discreet sideways glance. On the other end of it, that was, from where he was seated. It was probably a whirlpool but since Lyon and Gray weren't exactly into Jetstream tubs, Meredy had mostly been the one hogging it. Gray joked she'd turn into a mermaid and flush down the drain if she kept it up. Lyon remarked that he was fond of the scent of lavender. Needless to say, they were all going to have to enjoy the scent of lavender now because the entire bathroom and room reeked of it. At least it was supposed to be a relaxing smell. Not that it was doing much for him right now.

 

"Juvia, I want you to melt this sphere."

 

Perplexed, she tentatively did as he asked, hitting the sphere with a thin stream of water. The water dripped over the sphere and splattered across the inside of the tub. The sphere remained unmarked however. Trying harder, she applied more force, with the same result. The sphere had rocked a little under the pressure, but it remained unmelted by her efforts. Making a soft sound of frustration, her water grew hotter and wilder. Still, the sphere stayed the same. Soon she was pouring a lot of effort into melting the sphere, her water getting hotter and hotter, her attacks stronger. The entire bathtub was now drenched and splattered with water as were both of them. His hair dripped into his face and soaked her white sheets. The sphere, however, sat mockingly the same. Maybe a few small layers had peeled but it was still intact at the core.

 

"Gray-sama!" she cried in frustration, her eyes snapping up to his, face flushed and teeth gritted with anger and determination, "Stop fighting Juvia!"

 

Ah, so she'd realized he was keeping the sphere from melting under her attacks. He thought he'd been pretty subtle about it too. Well, Gray had never been accused of being subtle before, so to Juvia's sharp hawk-like eyes, it was most likely obvious that he was stacking the deck against her.

 

Abruptly, he cut off his magic as she asked without any warning. The sphere held ready, looking no different to the naked eye. The next attack, fueled by her frustration, hit the sphere dead on. The layers of ice blasted away, shards of ice slamming against the porcelain with sickening cracks that made them both cringed instinctively and shield their faces. At the center of the sphere, a fragile butterfly died a horrible, gory, instantaneous death. It didn't stand a chance.

 

Juvia blinked, stunned. Gray paled a little.

 

"That was my heart," Gray forced himself to say casually, although his voice trembled at the word heart, the explosion replaying in his mind. It was far too easy to imagine his worst fears coming to pass and his actual heart suffering like that. It was a lot more graphic than he'd anticipated. Juvia almost looked ill at his words, staring at the half melted, dead ice butterfly that had never been alive in the first place. One wing lay limply over the lip of the bathtub between them, pitted and pathetic. She reached for it hesitantly before snatching her fingers back to her chest, pale and eyes wide with realization. Her bottom lip trembled and he could see the trepidation in her beautiful eyes. Gray forced himself to go on and avoided looking at the wing or Juvia, "That's what I feel like might happen if I let you in… the more you push, the harder I had to push back, to keep safe. I just kept building up layers to keep it safe, hoping you'd just… stop. Juvia, I'm sorry for hurting you by being such a coward. It's really not you. You're beautiful, talented, cheerful and lovely in practically every way. I don't know how to say that any other way. I'll say it over and over again if I have to, until you get it. It's just the way you are, so even if I change my mind, you'll still be my Juvia, the woman I love and admire. The precious person in my life that I don't know what I'd do without. Romantically or not. I don't know; I feel like we do opposite things all the time and it gets miscommunicated. I protect my heart too much, and you don't protect yours enough."

 

This time he pulled up two hearts. Just the thought of conjuring up another set of butterflies made his stomach roil violently. He may never be able to look at the beautiful flying insects the same again, or possible at all. Hearts were just as good to illustrate what he meant, he decided. Plus, hearts didn't generally move. At least not the cartoony versions he chose to create. It was a little less traumatizing this way. He was already envisioning the horrific nightmares he was going to have about ice butterflies. This was precisely why he didn't use biologically-based Ice Make magic; it was too much to imagine ice animals being shattered or slaughtered while fighting for him. Lances and swords – they were weapons, inanimate and not alive. He could deal with that if they got broken. Let Lyon think he was deficient if that hid how much of a pussy he was about it. Animals… animals were just too realistic to use. And plants were just dumb. Sorry, he apologized in his head slightly guilty, but plants are dumb.

 

"Help me this time. Help me instead of fighting me, to make something to protect  _our_  hearts. Please, Juvia, work  _with_  me instead of against me. I know you can do it. Believe in yourself, okay?"

 

Tentatively, silently, she pushed a coil of water towards him. It was weak and insubstantial, as if she suspected he might pull another ghastly trick on her with it. He'd never liked to admit it, but it was much easier to combine his magic with Juvia's than work it alone. It was difficult to pull enough moisture of the air to create an infinite amount of ice. Sure, some of it came from him and some of it came from his magic, but a lot of the basic ingredients were pulled from nature. When Juvia provided the water, he could focus on shaping and guiding the ice rather than cobbling together enough ice to do what he needed to do. Which generally involved slamming, smashing, impaling or otherwise destroying everything in sight. There was going to be no more smashing today.

 

Piece by piece, tiny ice stone by tiny ice stone, the two of them built one wall, then another, then another, and another.

 

Whenever he thought of castles, he immediately thought of the parade. It was seared into his mind. Not just the parade, where he went out on that stupid float all banged up to hell from dealing with Laxus' dumbfuck antics, but how blissful Juvia had been to be his partner. How easily they worked together to wow the crowd, including stupid soppy Lyon and his crew of halfwits. How natural it felt to work  _with_  her instead of against her. That's what stuck in his mind. And it was something he had thought of often, when he was considering jobs or when she'd done something really annoying. Dragging out that cherished memory always helped to smooth things over in regards to thinking about Juvia. It was one of the reasons he loved to volunteer to babysit Asuka and play her game. He was obviously a giant fucking child who loved to build castles with his crush. And he'd been doing it for months without even realizing it. His level of lame hit a new record.

 

So it was natural that they worked together to build yet another castle, although he hadn't planned it that way. He paused to admire it, the detail he rarely managed with his slapdash approach to Ice Make. Juvia also peered at it solemnly, for once having nothing crazy to say. It sat there, perfect and complete, encasing both hearts with strong walls and big, glass windows. Ornate but breachable walls surrounded the castle, with the drawbridge let down and open as an invitation.

 

She drew herself up, looking mature and serious, instead of bursting into tears or running away. Body trembling, lower lip trembling, she gazed at him, blue eyes pulling him in. It was best that he hadn't ended with the crushed trauma. She considered his face, trying to read it for clues or hints, something that would betray what she was hearing and justify whatever was going on in her head. Finding nothing, she gave a long, heavy sigh, shoulders sagging, although he couldn't tell if it was with relief or despair.

 

"Juvia must confess something. Juvia was very angry at Gray-sama."

 

He stifled a surprised laugh. If Juvia thought that was a mystery, she must have been really angry. He thought she hadn't been trying to hide it at all, but clearly she thought otherwise. Even in the middle of their strange version of a fight, he felt a flush of affection that she so easily wore her heart on her sleeve. Even when her heart was beating to the drums of anger. It reminded him of his list, the list of Juvia. Gray didn't even bother to fight the halfhearted smile at The List.

 

Juvia's dark blue eyes bore into his, taking him by surprise and chasing away his thoughts and his smile, "Juvia was angry because… because Juvia thought Gray-sama was only thinking of her as a trophy. That he liked to win so much, he would do anything to beat Lyon. Juvia knows that's why Gray-sama and Lyon try so hard to win Juvia over. Juvia's  _not_  stupid, Gray-sama. And Juvia doesn't want that.

 

"I don't  _want_  that, Gray-sama. I would rather not have you at all than that!"

 

She took a huge breath, face pale, listening to her own words with consternation. Like she was hearing them for the first time, like she hadn't really been thinking about it at all. Maybe she hadn't been. Maybe she was doing what he always did, stuffing her feelings down and away because she didn't want to deal with them anymore. Sure, she knew she was angry, but she probably didn't realize why. Anger was a simple emotion, in the grand scheme of things. There was resentment, jealous, rage, irritation – these were all forms of anger. But this was a deeper form of anger, and judging by the look on her face, she was unsettled by it. She took a long moment to compose herself, face twisted up uncertainly, watching him for clues that he was angry with her in return.

 

She had reacted on instinct when she pushed him. She'd reacted on the lingering emotion afterwards. And she was finally slowing down enough to realize the root of her anger. Taking a deep breath, she continued in a hushed but heated voice that stabbed into him, "Juvia believes that prizes are forgotten. Once Lyon and Meredy left, Gray-sama would lose interest and be unmotivated, and Juvia would be alone again, rejected. Juvia doesn't want to be alone! Juvia has spent her life alone, and if Juvia finally gets her dream and loses it… Juvia can't stand that thought! Juvia has had enough rejection! Juvia just wants Gray-sama to love her. That's all. Juvia wants to be loved. It is not too much to ask, Juvia thinks. Gray-sama has hurt Juvia's feelings many times and many ways, and Juvia has tried to understand it and tolerate it even though he is cold and cruel sometimes. Because Juvia loves Gray-sama with all her heart."

 

Gray gritted his teeth but kept eye contact. He deserved that; he deserved all of that. He had been a bastard, and she had every right to call him on it. She steadied herself on the tub, drawing herself up with poise, sheets forgotten, pooled in her lap. His eyes never wavered though. This was dead-serious, and he wasn't going to look away.

 

They were finally getting  _somewhere_.

 

Ducking her head a little, she added darkly, "But Juvia is a coward, too. Because she wants to keep her dreams and illusions of Gray-sama the same. If Gray-sama thought she was a prize, then he wouldn't be the same Gray-sama. He wouldn't want to love Juvia and kiss Juvia and hold Juvia. He wouldn't be perfect; he wouldn't be the man Juvia fell in love with. This made Juvia very angry, that Gray-sama dared to say he loved her… that Gray-sama  _dared_  to ruin Juvia's love for him."

 

He'd never said that, Gray was sure. Yeah, he'd just gotten to the point where he admitted he liked her in a non-platonic way. Love… that word scared the hell out of him. Saying it out loud… scared him even more. But he wasn't going to bring that up. One thing at a time.

 

"Juvia is sorry for being so pushy. And for being angry and mean. Juvia just hates confrontation so much." She inched towards him while apologizing, still skittish and uncertain.

 

Now that, that Gray understood completely. His chest tightened, thinking about how much pain and misunderstanding could have been avoided if they just talked this out before instead of hiding, her behind her illusions and him behind his indifference.

 

He opened his mouth to assure her it was okay. He didn't understand, not completely, but that didn't matter. How him saying he loved her changed her love for him, he didn't get that at all. But he wasn't going to reject her, and he didn't think of her as a prize. Those he could understand; no one wanted to be abandoned. And a prize was the last thing he thought of her as. Lyon's visit happened to be completely coincidental to him recognizing his feelings. Okay, so Lyon's visit may have played a small, tiny, insignificant role in forcing him to recognize his feelings faster than if he went on his own time, in which she might have died from old age. There were so many things he wanted to say now that she'd broken through some of his walls. No, he was dying to say. He didn't want to start off any kind of new relationship without setting everything straight first.

 

She pressed her index finger to his lips firmly, leaning forward into his space. His train of thought came to a screeching halt at the sensation.

 

"Also," she flushed bright red, grabbing and clutching the sheet closer meekly, "Juvia realized how uncomfortable she makes Gray-sama with her actions in public." She squirmed slightly, blushing more, "Because Juvia was  _very_  embarrassed at Gray-sama's declarations of love! So embarrassed she couldn't even stand it! And so she ran away! Now Juvia understands why Gray-sama runs away when Juvia does things like that. Juvia is sorry."

 

Slowly, he slipped his hand into hers, pulling her finger away from his lips, and twining their fingers together securely. She squeezed them happily, clearly afraid to let go just in case he changed his mind. Still. He gave a reassuring squeeze back, having no intention of letting go.

 

"Man, I'm glad you realized that. It was embarrassing as hell for me to  _do_ them. You don't have to act out for my attention anymore, okay? And I promise I won't try to romance you in public and embarrass you… too much."

 

Tugging on her hand, he got to his feet. She stood up, brushing against him shyly. They made their way back into the main room, leaving a huge mess in the bathroom. Gray really didn't care though.

 

He gave her hand another reassuring squeeze, enjoying the novelty of the touch and marveling that he resisted for so long when something like this was waiting for him. But part of him was still cautious and reserved, worried about messing something up or not being vigilant enough, "Juvia, I think we should go slow, alright? You prolly wanna jump right into your fantasies or whatever. But I'm not ready for that… I'm definitely not ready for  _that_ , and I'm not sure you are either. I enjoyed our da—outing the other day. We should do that some more. And some training, too."

 

Juvia nodded with relief. She looked as lost as he felt rather than giddy as he expected her to be. Frankly, he expected to be flat out mauled once it got through to her he was serious. He guessed that was probably pretty normal when you unexpectedly reached a dream or a goal you'd held to your heart for a long time. It was going to take a while to fully sink in, so Gray decided to enjoy her stunned stupor while he could.

 

"We could start right now, Gray-sama. Meredy left this movie…"

 

"Oh hell no, no way."

 

"But Gray-sama could hold onto Juvia and she would cuddle away his fears…?" Juvia remarked, holding up the movie lacrima innocently, looking immensely hopeful at the prospect. He groaned, getting the heebee jeebees just from glancing at the preview on the cover. "Movies are very safe date things."

 

"Not those kinds of movies."

 

Her eyes glittered teasingly, "Gray-sama would prefer one of Erza's books?"

 

"Okay, okay, enough teasing. I feel like you know why too much shit on me now. What do I get out of it, huh? All I know is you like mint and have fish with dumb names. Who the hell has fish as pets anyway? They're so lame and boring."

 

He squirmed a little as Juvia gazed at him. It wasn't the whole I'm-creepily-watching-you-from-behind-a-pillar gaze or the heart-infested look she gave him when she was far off into her Juvialand. If anything, it was worse because it felt like she was really looking at  _him_. Without the rose-tinted glasses. And he wondered if he was good enough for all the pure love and admiration being directed at him. Ducking his head, he dropped her gaze, glancing at their hands instead, uncertainty and thrills alternating in wiggling through his gut.

 

"Juvia would like to introduce you to her pets, Blue and Red the betta fish. They are very friendly fish and very well behaved unlike other animals. They do not make messes or noise, and Juvia can leave them to go on missions. Fish are the perfect pets. Also, they guard Juvia's plushies when she is not there."

 

"P-plushies?"

 

"Of Gray-sama," Juvia nodded in agreement and he decided those would need to be cleared out before he ever visited her dorm. Not that they could go to the dorms with Erza lurking around anyway. They would definitely be going over to his place. Fuck, that meant he would need to clean it up too. There was no way he was going to let her come over when it looked like a pigsty. Well, it looked more like a backstage fashion show gone wrong more than anything. He was going to have to invest in a few more laundry baskets and actually do his laundry too. Uggh, laundry, his mortal enemy. Or it would be if he didn't just go spend all his money on buying new clothing so he'd have something to wear.

 

While he'd been considering arrangements, Juvia had gone off on a happy tangent about her hobbies, most of which he already knew about. She was pretty talented and creative after all. He listened with a soft half-smile as she chatted carefree and joyful. If someone had said he'd be blissfully listening to his crazy stalker babble away about nothing before, he would have called them a liar.

 

"You know, they're going to throw a hell of a party," Gray commented off-hand when she started to slow down, exhausting her excitement and enthusiasm and leaning into him drowsily. It had taken about two hours to happen and they hadn't let go of each other's hands once. It was kind of sweaty and gross, but Gray really didn't want to release her. Not until he had to. Like to go to the bathroom, then he'd let go. They were not at that level yet. "Y'know, once we get back. Maybe we should lay low about it for a while."

 

"Can Juvia tell her love rival? Just to be clear that Gray-sama is now hers explicitly." That statement was punctuated with a hard squeeze that may have crunched his knuckles together painfully. Just a little painful, that was all. He winced at her painful zealousness. He gave her a much gentler squeeze back and she released her deathgrip with a nervous smile.

 

Gray groaned, slapping his face with his free hand, "I said lay low. Tell Lucy and it'll be all over the guild in thirty seconds. Because she'll tell Natsu, and he won't get it, so he'll yell it out at the top of his lungs. Then that stupid cat will make his smart mouthed comments… Never mind, we should just get it over with and tell everyone right away. I'll let you do it."

 

"Juvia… Juvia can tell the guild?" Her entire face flamed up at the thought. "That Gray-sama is hers now?"

 

"Yeah, sure. But on one condition. You have to stop this Gray-sama business, okay? We're officially partners now, I guess, and partners don't put each other on a pedestal. We're even, right? That whole self-respect thing I keep saying, you've got to implement it. Pretend like we're on a mission or something. You're a kickass warrior and a loyal partner, so act the part, okay?"

 

"But…"

 

"No buts," Gray retorted sternly.

 

"Then… Gray-sam… I mean, Gray could call Juvia Juvia-sama," she stuttered, pushing her fingers together, glancing up at him with a nervous, pouty look. "To make it even."

 

"I guess I walked right into that one," Gray remarked, pausing to eye her. She looked away, losing her nerve at his pause. He gave a fond smirk, dropping his voice playfully, and whispered in her ear, "Maybe in private. Juvia- _sama_?"

 

"Eek!"

 

"Oi, don't melt on me!"


	14. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And this, my friends, is the end. I hope everyone enjoyed the story.

 

Epilogue 

 

Lyon and Gray sat in the cell sulkily. Well, actually, Gray was kicked back, relaxed, chatting with the officer like it was the most natural thing in the world. Lyon was sulking. With his arms across his chest, his shoulders hunched and a sneer across his face. Mostly because he had better things to do than sit in a fucking jail cell with his dumbass brother for stupid shit. And he wasn't even drunk! This time.

"Don't worry Gray. I'm sure someone will come for you guys… I'd let it slide but chief said when someone calls to complain… well, you know, we have to do something. Personally, I don't even know why anyone would bother. It's been, what, six months since the last call? A new record for you, bro."

"Yeah, I know. I've been pretty busy with guild stuff since the Games. Lots of missions and stuff. Plus, I got a girlfriend now," Gray remarked coolly, dropping that in there smooth and natural. A briefly goofy look crossed his face but he erased it with his too-cool-for-school attitude in a second.

"Oh, that fine little water mage who you talked about before? Nice, man, nice. Congrats. Now I'm really sorry to lock you two dudes up. Betcha you were with your ladies, am I right?"

_Fine little water mage?_  Just who did that ignorant little twerp think he was talking about Lyon's soon-to-be sister-in-law like that?

Another officer walked in and motioned towards them, "You're free. Keep your damn clothing on in public, you perverts."

Lyon had never felt so shamed in his life the second he walked out into the lobby to see Meredy… and Jellal. Meredy was looking amused; Jellal had his hooded pulled up like a dark avenger. What kind of wanted criminal waltzed into a police station? Where the fun police had come from, he had no clue. He had hoped for at least one more day without the man, since he was due back tomorrow, but fate seemed to be against him. If he had known, Lyon would have insisted on staying at the resort for another day, citing some ridiculous reason like enjoying the scenic view of the blizzard landscape and naked Master Bob.

"This is the sort of man you want to date?" Jellal's voice held just a tiny bit of malice and judgment… just a smidge. Okay, it was like a fucking neon billboard. Lyon couldn't even say anything, since the man happened to be posting his bail and retrieving him from the police station.

"Oh Jellal," Meredy sighed, sounding exasperated. A fond sort of exasperation, but exasperation none the less. Lyon was miffed. He thought they'd discussed  _him_  broaching the subject with Jellal and  _properly_  asking permission. Yet she'd gone and blabbed it and brought Papa Jellal to bail her boyfriend out of jail. This could not be any fucking worse. She ignored him, full attention on appeasing Jellal. "I have to grow up and date  _sometime_ … and I love you. Oh, and I missed you too."

Jellal cast a suspicious look at Lyon but visibly softened at her affectionate words.

"I suppose you are correct, and I missed you as well," Jellal conceded gracefully in a low voice, slightly mumbling the second part. His face clouded over and he gave Lyon a killer glare behind Meredy's back. "But, I think you should date a nice boy  _your_  own age. Not a man  _my_  age."

"And, I'm done with this topic," Meredy warned, whirling around. Jellal looked innocent as the day he was born, nasty glare vanishing in an instant. She eyed him suspiciously, obviously convinced he was bullying Lyon behind her back. Which he was. And Lyon would rather die than admit it or ask for protection.

"Jura was quite disappointed, you know," Lyon butted in, trying valiantly to change the topic. Fighting was always a good topic in his mind. It was a perfectly safe topic, the Games. What happened after the Games, well, not so much. But the Games were a great topic. It was something they could all talk about. Safely. "He knew it was you, in the tournament, and he looked forward to a true challenge."

Jellal's ears turned red despite his scowl and he grumbled a little, "That was not my fault. Meredy cast a spell on me that interfered with the fight."

"Hey! Don't blame me. Ultear did it; I had to suffer too, you know!" Meredy yelped, trying to scrape the imaginary taste of peppers out of her mouth with her teeth. Lyon chuckled a little at the faces she was making. "That totally ruined peppers for me forever."

"If Ultear told you to leap off a cliff, would you do it?"

My, someone was testy.

"Yes."

Wow, absolutely no hesitation in that answer whatsoever. Lyon winced a little, not really wanting to be in the middle of this family spat anymore. If claws were coming out so soon, he didn't want to become a scratching post.

"If I did?"

If Jellal hadn't been spoiling for a fight, he might have reconsidered that question, Lyon thought. It was like opening a tiger pen and wondering what happened.

Meredy paused to consider it before nodding, "Maybe, if you weren't being crazy about it. Like if a monster was going to eat me or like if a dark guild was going to capture me. Then I might jump off a cliff."

Jellal's face darkened a little at the word 'crazy' and Lyon decided this had gone far enough. Gently, he grabbed Meredy's elbow and tugged her away from her angry guardian. She struggled a little and smacked his hand but stepped with him easily enough. He almost smirked at that. On the surface she was putting up a good fight, for show, but she probably realized it was time to shut her mouth or get into trouble. She was taking his out; he hoped she'd show proper gratitude later for his generosity.

"Now, now, no more talk of jumping off cliffs. If that were so, then I would have to create a flying animal large enough to save you, after all, and that costs a lot of magical power," Lyon gave her a wink, eyes traveling to said part of her anatomy of his next statement for a little admiration. "And then your nice little hind end would be rather cold."

"You can do that?"

"Freeze your bott—ahem, yes, I can create a bird large enough to carry a person," Lyon saved himself mid-sentence at the murderous look being cast his way. Jellal was a major fun-killer, just like Meredy had said. Did the man not have a sense of humor?

"But why a bird? Why not, like, something cooler? A gryphon or a…"

"Dragon! Hey, can you make an ice dragon? That'd be so coooool. Gray totally can't do that because he's lame!" Natsu butted in, totally oblivious to the silent politics going on between the three mages. Lyon didn't even know why he was there. Other than he insisted on being a loud nuisance; why wasn't he pestering Gray? Where was Gray?

Oh ho, Lyon saw how it was. That fucking coward ran off with his tail tucked between his legs the moment he could. Or he grew some balls and was going to find Juvia to actually  _do_ something. Well, he could have at least taken his noisy friend with him.

"Only for pretty girls," Lyon wanted to smack the idiot. He could definitely see how the Dragon Slayer got on Gray's last nerve so often. Lyon felt like he might be partially deaf after having that kid bellow in his ear. And he was a far more mature and patient individual than his brother.

"I don't know what pretty girls have to do with it…" Natsu replied, puzzled. Lyon almost retorted he should grow some boobs and find out but bit his tongue at the last moment. Fortunately, Natsu seemed to give up on the conversation all together at that moment and wandered off towards a small diner down the street.

"Lucy's doomed," Meredy muttered with a giggle, leaning against Lyon lightly as they stepped out into the street behind him and stopped. She cast a disapproving glance at Jellal, who was currently trying to light Lyon on fire or throw him across the room with a glare. Neither effort was particularly successful, thankfully, and Lyon liked it that way. He wanted to stay in one piece. He could take glares; he was the king of nasty glares himself. "So's Erza. Jellal, don't you have something else to do? You come into town and you're following me around? Go see your not-girlfriend. You didn't need to go with me to the police station to get Lyon."

Jellal seemed to lose all his fight and said something under his breath.

Meredy snorted mercilessly, "That's why I said NOT-girlfriend. Because she's not. And who's fault is that exactly? I have zero pity for you, buddy."

Lyon was beginning to see who was running the show here, and it wasn't the ex-Wizard Saint. And damn, if he didn't find it rather endearing, and of course, vastly entertaining. Plus, he approved. He highly respected Titania, and if Jellal was treating her disrespectfully, then he deserved a tongue lashing, at the very least. 

"Erza deserves to be happy," Jellal replied suddenly flipping a switch into emo-mode. Meredy rolled her eyes, looking sour, "I think-."

"I only bring misery to everyone close to me." This sounded like an old and worn out argument to Lyon. There wasn't anything behind it but resigned belief.

Meredy stared at him, "I'm not sure if that implies I'm not close to you or that I've been miserable all this time without a clue."

It took Jellal a full minute to contemplate and decode. Lyon couldn't help but smirk at how red his face was but he held his tongue. While this was a joy, to watch Meredy dress down the former Wizard Saint, he didn't want to bring undue attention to himself lest he get ejected from his ringside seat. Or Meteor'd for merely existing and breathing the same air as Meredy.

"Meredy…" the blue haired man started tentatively, sensing impending tears.

"Don't talk to me!" she yelled, fleeing into Lyon's arms and burying her head in his chest. Jellal dithered a moment, trying to work up the nerve to talk to her. She mumbled, "Don't talk to me right now; I'm mad at you."

Lyon waited until Jellal had fully disappeared around the corner before chuckling. She stood up straight and swatted him in annoyance, brow furrowed.

"And how often do you pull that little trick, Snoopy?" he chuckled again, knowing full well she'd been fake sobbing. She rolled her eyes shamelessly, "Not that often. Besides, it only works when Erza's around. Did you want a chaperon on our date or not? And you're my accomplice, you know. For not saying anything."

"Valid point. I couldn't have a more beautiful or intelligent partner in crime~"

"Oh my god, Lyon, stooooop!" she yelped then giggled, leaning back into him to hide her face. Lyon smirked a little. Once he realized how embarrassed she was by his romantic utterances, he couldn't resist slipping them in; they rolled off the tongue so nicely after all. She shoved him, "Okay, let's go find Gray and Juvia. Jellal  _better_  go find Erza because if he doesn't I'm Sensory Linking the crap out of them. And letting  _her_  hunt  _him_  down."

There was a shuffling noise down a side alley and a flash of a dark cloak.

"Was that—I mean…"

"Yup. He can't let things go the first time. Jellal is a pretty fixated guy. Usually it works in his favor for work things and stuff but it can be really annoying living with him when he insists on routines we changed ages ago."

"And how long does this usually take?"

"Hmmm," she thought about it. Nodding to herself, she replied, "A while. That's why I wanted to break it to him first. Sorry about that; I know you were dying to be all man to man and all. He'll warm up to you… I think. Eventually. Or maybe never. Jellal took forever to decide he even liked me. I think kids might scare him or something. But he loves me now."

"Or maybe you scared him as a child," Lyon grinned, snaking his arm around her waist and pulling her around against his side. Flushing a little, he added generously, aware his previous impressions hadn't exactly screamed reliable, "And I hardly made the best first impression."

"Criminals are pretty hot. And I was a really scary child actually," she grinned back. "That whole dark guild member thing. No smiling, all doom and gloom. Super serious too. And, you know, I kind of tried to kill a few Fairy Tail members. I think it's a theme between Jellal and me."

"Been there, done that, long before you, Snoopy," Lyon snorted ruffling her hair, warm gooeys running through him at the teasing. He hadn't ever really stopped feeling guilty about Galuna Island. But it was nice to approach it humorously rather than the angstfest he and Gray indulged in with lots and lots of alcohol around the anniversary of Ur's death.

She leaned peacefully against him, quiet for a moment, before sighing a little. "All the shops are closed. I wish there was a festival or something going on. Isn't Magnolia supposed to have festivals all the time? I wish I could see the parade! And be in the pageant, just for fun. There's no way I'd win against Erza or Mira after all. But it'd be fun anyway! And Lucy told me about this run they do, and it sounds fun too," she sighed a little more, sad. "Tomorrow we're leaving, I guess. I know our guild has an important purpose, but sometimes I wish Jellal would just let us settle down. Then I could just take the train and see you whenever I wanted. Or you could come see me, here at Fairy Tail."

Lyon didn't point out she could join Lamia Scale instead. He could tell she truly had the heart of a Fairy. Instead, he retorted, "You don't even know where I live."

"I could find out. That'd be a cinch for someone like me!"

"I'm sure it would be. I await the day I come home to you waiting on my couch."

"Who said I'd be on your  _couch_?" Well now,  _that_  was something to look forward to. "And maybe you could meet the rest of my guild! They'll probably hate you on sight, but they pretty much hate everyone, so you'd be in good company." She sounded entirely too cheerful about that.

Rest… of her guild? Just how many criminals did she consort with on a daily basis?

"Oh, let's go up there!" He followed her pointing finger to a tall building in the center of town. Having no idea if it was even open to the public, they meandered towards it lazily. Finding it wasn't open to the public or open at midnight, they went back towards the guild instead, but Meredy wasn't dissuaded. Personally, Lyon was not a fan of heights, but Meredy was dead set on going up somewhere high and having a view of the town. Probably something from one of those stupid books that lodged in her head. Still, he wasn't going to argue, since he currently had her cuddled up to him and there was no Jellal in sight.

Although, creepily, there could be a Jellal  _out_  of sight. A shiver went up his spine at that thought.

It turned out Mira was more than happy to lend them the key to the roof with a wink and a finger over her lips, since Lyon had to go through the dorms to get there. She seemed entirely too pleased with the whole thing, telling them to take their time but warning them not to be too naughty. Really, the woman needed to get herself a boyfriend, considering all the effort she invested in other peoples' relationships. She had been over the moon ecstatic when Gray grumpily informed her that he and Juvia were going to start dating and not to make a big fuss. Juvia had tried to say it but she sputtered out in disbelief midway though, face lobster-red and clutching Gray's arm like a bear trap. It was probably going to take some time for her to come to terms with it.

The entire guild spent the day partying while the Team Natsu girls returned from their mission just in time to take part. Most of the members were passed out and probably suffering from alcohol poisoning at this point and time. And Gray and Lyon ended up nude in the street and then charged with public indecency. Lyon was still not sure how the hell that even happened. He would be glad to get the fuck away from Gray and his perverted bad habits.

"It's beautiful."

He hummed in agreement, privately thinking that she was beautiful, rather than the cityscape. She was leaning against the roof top wall, comfortably have perched over it, entirely unafraid of heights. Lyon wasn't too keen to get that close to the edge and he really wasn't interested in her falling off either, so he stood behind her, arms looped firmly across her middle, anchoring her firmly to him. Propping his chin on her shoulder, he enjoyed the silence between them.

After all, they'd talked and teased all day long, escaping the mega party as quickly as possible to have some time alone in Magnolia.

"Oooh, Jellal found Erza," Meredy squealed, startling him and breaking the silence. He was about to ask her how she knew that when he remembered her link. She pointed wildly towards the back of the guild where Lyon caught a flash of red and another of blue. The two seemed to be talking, respectfully at a distance. He yawned, uninterested, but happy that Jellal was that far away.

Suddenly, Erza stepped forward, closing the space between them and saying something too low for them to hear.

"Oh my, are they finally going to kiss?"

Lyon muttered in her ear, "This isn't a lacrima drama, you know." Secretly, he was just as curious. What was this finally business? Had Jellal not kissed Titania before? No wonder he was stalking them like an overprotective papa. Those were the cockblocking type of people; the ones that needed to get some themselves.

Erza leaned into the man for a hug, pressing her forehead against his. The two sat like that for a long moment, sharing something that made Meredy blush and squirm against him. Like a flash, it was over, both stepping back into neutral space. Lyon wasn't sure exactly what had happened but judging by the flustered state of Meredy, it was more than just an innocent forehead touch.

"Ahaha, ahem," she giggled with stress. Straightening herself up, she muttered, "I hate that. I will definitely know the day they finally do something. And all the days after that because it'll be like the first time, over and over, with those two. And I'm going to die with embarrassment! Every time!"

Lyon pressed a few idle, lazy kisses to her exposed skin, immediately losing interest in the drama below, "I could make you forget all about that."

Silence descended again, his eyes growing heavier as the night grew chillier and later. At some point his jacket migrated to her shoulders, making her snuggle into it contently, nose buried in the fabric. She didn't seem to be tired though, watching the sky and watching the city lights wink out one by one.

"Oh…  _oh_."

He blinked a few times, trying to focus on what she was pointing at now.

Gray and Juvia blended into the shadows fairly well. Only a faint ring of light from the front of the guild illuminated them where they were at the side of the building. Gray had probably gotten sucked back into the party after his jailbreak, and Juvia looked like she never escaped from the party at all. But both seemed surprisingly sober and steady not to mention quiet... almost like they were sneaking around.

Juvia was backed into the guild building wall, her fingers twined with Gray's over her head, and her front arched against him lightly. Gray seemed relaxed though, not fighting or holding her back, just loosely pressing their hands together for a connection, elbows against the wall to prop him up just far enough away to give him some space and traction. It was strange enough to see Gray letting someone in his personal space so intimately, but the genuine, carefree smile on his lips as he leaned forward further to say something to Juvia, was downright amazing.

Lyon was stabbed by the earnest look on his face as he pressed a gentle kiss to Juvia's lips, the two lingering like that softly far longer than necessary. Lyon hadn't even suspected Gray was capable of such a tender act. Even though this was the desired end result, even if this is what Juvia wanted and she would be happy, and she did seem over-the-moon happy, Lyon couldn't help the traitorous searing pain in his heart. It wounded him more than he had imagined it would though. Seeing his love with another, seeing the love he would never have possessed no matter how hard he tried.

The two broke apart slowly, Juvia beaming and trying to grab Gray's hand, while Gray made a face and snatched it back, ruining the moment completely.

"Still no hand holding in public. I hope they don't drive each other crazy with that," Meredy tutted. She caught a glance of his face, the pleased smile dropping off her own. "You're hurting."

"Yes," there was no reason to bother deigning it; they both knew it. He wasn't going to try to be macho and hide it.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, frowning, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pointed it out." Whether she meant the couple or his lack of composure, he wasn't sure.

Her lack of jealous humbled him. She wasn't judging him or accusing him. Meredy was more worried about his feelings more than anything else. And this was why he didn't view her as a child. From the first day they'd conspired together, he could tell she was more mature in some ways than he'd ever be. Even if she was silly in unimportant ways.

"Well, logically and rationally, I already knew, so…"

She turned to face him with a frown, "It's not the same, and you know it." He ducked his head at her chiding, acknowledging her words. She took advantage and pulled him to her chest, which, admittedly, was a very nice place to be. He'd enjoy it more under different circumstances though. With a sigh, she ran her fingers slowly through his hair, twirling the ends of the spikes and brushing against his scalp.

"I can't feel sorry for you though. Because, well, I want Juvia and Gray to be happy." Lyon nodded in agreement, unable to speak, but feeling the same way. It was mostly in agreement with what she said anyway. She continued to play with his hair, not missing a beat as she brutally laid it out for him. He felt a sense of déjà vu, as if karma might just be getting him back for his harsh words and gentle actions on the train. "But, you know what, life moves on. I know you love Juvia, and you love Gray too. So of course it hurts. That makes sense right? And you know the real reason I can't feel too sorry for you?"

"And why is that?" He focused on her heartbeat, marveling how strong and calm it was. He tried to match his to her beat, mastering himself and anchoring himself.

"Because you have me. Juvia's loss is my gain, right?" she paused to tilt his chin up so their eyes met. Impulsively, she dove forward, pressing against him radiating need, instigating a searing kiss that was far less innocent than Gray and Juvia's. He steadied against her, panting slightly, stunned.

She drew back, her entire face bright red.

"Uggh, I got too carried away," she peeped in apology. Lyon smiled softly, taking her hand between his, and whispered, "Thank you. For being you. And being with me. Here."

He fumbled around, not sure which pocket he'd put the small box it. He'd spent the night before staying up, working with Gray, and it would be a tragedy if he somehow lost the box. Fingers scrabbled around and found it, latching on and dragging it out.

She took it curiously, blinking, and slowly opened it and promptly dropped it in surprise. Fortunately, Lyon suspected that might be the case and easily caught it, handing it back to her.

"What's this?"

"Your apology."

The necklace glistened in the starlight, a perfect, single rose. Each delicate petal curled perfectly in place, each serrated leaf peeked out evenly, and a chain decorated with tiny, harmless thorns wound through her fingers. He'd added dye to the water use to create it, turning the rose a beautiful range of pinks that faded to nothing at the tips. A thin, clear cover kept the rose suspended and protected, safe from harm.

"It's not even cold," she remarked wonderingly, holding it like it would shatter in her hands at the slightest pressure, in the breathy voice. "Just a little cool."

"That would be uncomfortable for you to wear, so Gray and I experimented with a way to modify the temperature. That Max fellow helped us as well. Seems he uses Sand magic, and has his own hobby, crafting glass. Quite a fortunate find. May I?"

Mutely, she handed it back to him, and he lifted her hair to fasten the chain around the neck. Running his hands through her hair slowly, he let it fall back down. Taking a step back, he studied both her and the necklace. She gazed at the ground, trembling. Concerned, he tried to peer at her face and realized she was crying.

"What if I break it?" The genuine horror in her voice made him pause. Clutching the rose with both hands, she held it tightly, but reverently. He petted her bowed head and replied soothingly, "You won't. I know you'll be very careful. And if you do, Gray and I will make another one."

"Th-thank you Lyon!"

"You're welcome Snoopy."


End file.
